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Sympathetic portrayal of Alex Jones rebuked as ‘hypocrisy’

Judge Maya Guerra Gamble speaks to Alex Jones during his trial at the Travis County Courthouse in Austin, Texas, Tuesday, July 26, 2022. An attorney for the parents of one of the children who were killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting told jurors that Jones repeatedly “lied and attacked the parents of murdered children” when he told his Infowars audience that the 2012 attack was a hoax. Attorney Mark Bankston said during his opening statement to determine damages against Jones that Jones created a “massive campaign of lies” and recruited “wild extremists from the fringes of the internet ... who were as cruel as Mr. Jones wanted them to be" to the victims' families. Jones later blasted the case, calling it a “show trial” and an assault on the First Amendment. (Briana Sanchez/Austin American-Statesman via AP, Pool) Mark Bankston, lawyer for Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, parents of Sandy Hook shooting victim Jesse Lewis, gives an opening statement during the trial against Alex Jones Tuesday, July 26, 2022, Travis County Courthouse in Austin, Texas. Bankston told jurors that Jones repeatedly “lied and attacked the parents of murdered children” when he told his Infowars audience that the 2012 attack was a hoax. Bankston said during his opening statement to determine damages against Jones that Jones created a “massive campaign of lies” and recruited “wild extremists from the fringes of the internet ... who were as cruel as Mr. Jones wanted them to be" to the victims' families. Jones later blasted the case, calling it a “show trial” and an assault on the First Amendment. (Briana Sanchez/Austin American-Statesman via AP, Pool) Alex Jones talks to media during a midday break during the trial at the Travis County Courthouse in Austin, Texas, Tuesday, July 26, 2022. An attorney for the parents of one of the children who were killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting told jurors that Jones repeatedly “lied and attacked the parents of murdered children” when he told his Infowars audience that the 2012 attack was a hoax. Attorney Mark Bankston said during his opening statement to determine damages against Jones that Jones created a “massive campaign of lies” and recruited “wild extremists from the fringes of the internet ... who were as cruel as Mr. Jones wanted them to be" to the victims' families. Jones later blasted the case, calling it a “show trial” and an assault on the First Amendment. (Briana Sanchez/Austin American-Statesman via AP, Pool) Scarlett Lewis, left, and Neil Heslin, right, the parents of 6-year-old Sandy Hook shooting victim Jesse Lewis, rise once Judge Maya Guerra Gamble begins the third day of trial Thursday, July 28, 2022, at the Travis County Courthouse. The parents are seeking two awards of $150 million from Austin-based conspiracy theorist Alex Jones in court. Jones has been found to have defamed the parents of a Sandy Hook student for calling the attack a hoax. (Briana Sanchez/Austin American-Statesman via AP, Pool) Bill Ogden, partner with the firm representing Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, parents of parents of Sandy Hook shooting victim Jesse Lewis, reacts while watching a clip from InfoWars during the trial for Alex Jones Thursday, July 28, 2022. (Briana Sanchez/Austin American-Statesman via AP, Pool)
Sympathetic portrayal of Alex Jones rebuked as ‘hypocrisy’