Jones baselessly told his audience in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that the incident was staged. In the Connecticut case, where Jones is being sued by eight more Sandy Hook families, Judge Barbara Bellis issued a default judgment against the Infowars founder in November 2021 after he failed to comply with court orders. The attorney argued to the jury that the lies Jones told about the families of Sandy Hook victims were far more damaging than the commentary that had bothered Jones and prompted his legal action. Because the judge already ruled that Jones is liable, the jury is determining the amount in damages to award the plaintiffs. Norman Pattis, Jones’ attorney, has argued that the claims made by the Sandy Hook plaintiffs are “exaggerated.” Pattis has also said the Sandy Hook families have “become partisans” and said the defense will argue the harm has been overstated “because they want to silence [Jones] for political reasons.”

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