WATERBURY, Conn. — Alex Jones and the analytics and data from his InfoWars websites and social media platforms were under the microscope during the second day of the Connecticut trial into his claims of the Sandy Hook tragedy was a hoax.
The morning consisted of grilling a Connecticut attorney about InfoWars’ company’s structure, viewership, finances, products and motives. The afternoon session took a deeper dive into the specific videos and articles from InfoWars that focused on the Sandy Hook shooting.
Brittany Paz currently runs her own law firm out of Shelton and is a corporate representative for Free Speech Systems. She also worked for Attorney Norm Pattis, Jones' attorney in this civil trial, for five years in the 2010s.
The prosecution tried to show that not only has Jones lied about Sandy Hook, but also about other mass shootings, a government plot to starve humanity and poison the water supply and the COVID pandemic. Prosecuting Attorney Chris Mattei said Jones profited from all of them.
InfoWars made money in many ways, Mattei said, including ads, selling products at the online store, and collecting donations.
During the testimony, Paz admitted that donations made to Jones with cryptocurrency would go into his personal crypto wallet, not a company wallet.
When the plaintiff asked if the donated crypto goes into his personal account, Paz answered, “As where is the money kept? Yes.”
She did not know whether he would say during his broadcasts that the donations go to Free Speech Systems but said “he doesn’t tell anyone where it goes and what it does with it.”
Testimony revealed that Alex Jones was in full and total control of all aspects of his media company.
“He’s not accountable to any board of directors or any governing authority, is he?” asked Mattei.
“No, he’s not,” responded Paz.
“What percentage of revenue of Free Speech Systems is from Alex Jones supplement sales?” asked Mattei.
“I can’t recall as I sit here today, I’m sorry,” responded Paz.
The prosecution cited analytics statistics to show how Jones’ audience grew after his Sandy Hook lie.
“In selling himself to advertisers but also in selling himself to his audience he tells them they can count on him for the truth, right?” asked Mattei.
“I have seen him say that, yes,” responded Paz.
When it came to the articles and topics InfoWars would present to its audience, Paz initially hesitated to call a specific InfoWars headline regarding Sandy Hook “clickbait.”
The prosecution tried to illustrate how Jones misrepresented himself as a journalist to boost his credibility, and in doing so, created inflammatory and misleading content including a video titled “CT School massacre looks like false flag, witnesses say”.
When Mattei asked whether the headline was clickbait, Paz said, “In the sense that it would grab someone's attention? Yes.”
Asked whether the headline itself was untrue, Paz said she didn't disagree it was false.
“I don’t think that we disagree that there were false statements made,” Paz said.
A clip from his InfoWars show was played aloud in court where Jones can be heard saying, “I’ve interviewed the cops and the people who saw the feds plant the bombs in Oklahoma City. Yovictims'hem stage fast and furious. Folks, they staged Aurora, they staged Sandy Hook. The evidence is just overwhelming. That’s why I’m so desperate and freaked out. This is not fun getting up here telling you this. Somebody’s gotta tell you the truth.”
Getting a jury to believe Jones profited off his lies is key to awarding the victims families a large sum of money under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act.
“What kind of ceiling you put on it is difficult and I think it’s the type of thing that is going to stir emotions beyond what we see in ordinary life,” explained criminal defense attorney Willie Dow, who is not connected to the case.
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Jones is accused of claiming that the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, was a hoax and that his claims have led to the victims being harassed and sent death threats.
Eight families of victims and an FBI agent who responded to the scene on Dec. 14, 2012, filed the suit.
This trial will determine the state punitive and compensatory damages Jones and Free Speech Systems (InfoWars) could owe in this civil trial. Liability will not be decided in this trial with no reason from the courts specified for the jurors.
A Texas jury last month ordered Jones to pay $49.3 million to the parents of 6-year-old Jesse Lewis, one of 26 students and teachers killed in the 2012 mass shooting. Jones' lawyer has said they plan to appeal that ruling.
Jones also will face a third trial back in Texas involving the parents of another slain child.
Jones was not in attendance Wednesday but is expected to testify sometime between Monday and Wednesday of next week.
This trial is expected to last four to five weeks.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Leah Myers is a digital content producer at FOX61 News. She can be reached at lmyers@fox61.com
Matt Caron is a reporter at FOX61 News. He can be reached at mcaron@fox61.com. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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