Aug 5 (Reuters) – Texas jurors deliberated on Friday on how much Alex Jones should pay in punitive damages to the parents of a child killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook shootings for falsely claiming that the massacre had been staged.
Parents of 6-year-old Jesse Lewis are seeking $145.9 million in punitive damages for broadcaster’s lies about the murder of 20 children and six staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14, 2012.
“We’re asking you to send a very, very simple message, which is: Stop Alex Jones. Stop the monetization of misinformation and lies,” Wesley Todd Ball, the parents’ attorney, told jurors before they do not begin deliberations.
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A lawyer for Jones, Federico Andino Reynal, asked the jurors to return a verdict of $270,000 based on the number of hours Infowars spent covering Sandy Hook.
The 12-person jury said Thursday that Jones should pay the parents $4.1 million in compensatory damages for spreading conspiracy theories about the massacre. The verdict follows a two-week trial in Austin, Texas, where Jones’ Infowars radio show and webcast is based.
Earlier Friday, forensic economist Bernard Pettingill testified on behalf of Lewis’ parents that Jones “promulgated hate speech and misinformation” and “made a lot of money.”
Jones and Infowars are worth between $135 million and $270 million combined, Pettingill said.
Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis testified that Jones supporters harassed them for years in the false belief that the parents lied about their son’s death.
Jones sought to distance himself from conspiracy theories during his testimony, apologizing to parents and acknowledging that Sandy Hook was “100% real”.
Jones’ company, Free Speech Systems LLC, filed for bankruptcy last week. Jones said on a Monday show that the filing will help the company stay on the air while it appeals.
The bankruptcy filing stayed a similar defamation lawsuit filed by Sandy Hook’s parents in Connecticut where, like in Texas, he has already been found liable.
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Reporting by Jack Queen; Editing by Howard Goller and Mark Porter
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