A Texas appeals court has reduced a $50 million damages award against conspiracy theorist Alex Jones stemming from his false claims that the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School killings were a hoax.

In a unanimous decision on Friday, the Texas Third Court of Appeals said the Infowars founder can be made to pay about $6 million under state law limits on damages. The ruling affects only the Texas case brought by Sandy Hook parents Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis.

Texas Ruling Keeps Defamation Finding

The appeals court did not overturn the trial judge’s determination that Jones defamed Heslin and Lewis. However, it trimmed a large portion of the damages to comply with caps set under Texas statute.

Jurors had awarded more than $4.1 million in compensatory damages for defamation and emotional distress, which the appellate court left in place. The court, though, reduced punitive damages of more than $45 million down to $1.5 million, noting a $750,000 limit for each plaintiff.

The panel said Heslin and Lewis had not produced evidence showing the harassment that followed Jones’ claims reached a level that would justify exceeding the cap. It also found the trial court had allowed the parents to seek higher damages after the trial.

Jones said the outcome was a significant win for free speech and indicated he would continue appealing to the Texas Supreme Court to seek the remaining damages thrown out.

Connecticut Judgment Not Affected

The Texas decision does not change a separate $1.25 billion judgment against Jones in Connecticut. That case found Jones liable for defaming relatives of 20 first-graders and six educators killed in Newtown and for causing emotional distress.

Heslin and Lewis’ Texas lawsuit arose from Jones’ portrayal of the massacre as staged in order to advance gun control measures. At trial in both states, relatives testified that people who believed Jones’ claims harassed them, including threats and in-person abuse, as well as abusive comments online. Jones argued there was no proof linking him to those acts.

Despite his years of appeals, Jones conceded during the Texas trial that the shootings were real and that he was wrong to have lied about them.

Bankruptcy And Moves Away From Infowars

The financial verdicts against Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems, have contributed to bankruptcy proceedings. Court actions have resulted in some of his personal property being scheduled for auction, and he has left the Infowars platform.

Jones had taken Infowars off the air in April and shifted to shows hosted on new websites, along with posts on his personal X account. Sandy Hook families have said they have not yet collected any money from Jones.

The Onion Targets Infowars Branding

The satire site The Onion has also tried to take over parts of Jones’ media operation by turning Infowars into parody pages. A proposed licensing deal that would have given The Onion temporary authority to use Infowars’ trademarks, copyrights and intellectual property has been paused because the liquidation process has been stayed during Jones’ appeals.

In November 2024, The Onion was named the winner of a bankruptcy court auction for Free Speech Systems assets intended to help pay defamation awards. A federal judge later overturned that auction outcome, citing issues with the process and The Onion’s bid.

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22 August 2026

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The Texas decision does not change a separate $1.25 billion judgment against Jones in Connecticut.

Phew......and relax.

These gfrifters are not going to get 1.2 billion from Alex Jones for hurt feelings

why don't they go after the killer Adam Peter Lanza for 'compensation'

awe shucks !!

Ohh and by the way Alex Jones is still on air ranting and raving about all multitudes of subjects which he is uncannily almost always correct about,of course he does get some things wrong doesn't everyone ?

19 hours ago, webfact said:

A Texas appeals court has reduced a $50 million damages award against conspiracy theorist Alex Jones

Some serious biased news reporting.

Alex Jones is not a conspiracy theorist.

(you want the truth ? you can't handle the truth -- from the movie : a few good men)

The reduced damages are a good start , but the lawfare continues.

I hope they don't get a dime from him.

Alex Jones is Bill Hicks.

We have evidence.

21 hours ago, Woke to Sounds said:

Alex Jones is Bill Hicks.

Pahh you conspiracy theorist you.😋

This is another example proving why there's basically ZERO chance any Democrat will win in Texas

Texans do everything they can to cheat and they're proud of it. 😎

Nothing more crooked than a Friday night high school football game in Texas or an election.

11 minutes ago, SiSePuede419 said:

This is another example proving why there's basically ZERO chance any Democrat will win in Texas

Texans do everything they can to cheat and they're proud of it. 😎

Nothing more crooked than a Friday night high school football game in Texas or an election.

Are you forgetting Crockett, the potty mouth? Not to mention, Houston and Austin and Dallas are Blue crapholes. (Which pains me, being from Galveston, with most of my family in Houston and Austin). Overlay the crime rate, and you'll get just about the same map.

Texas is basically a safe space for unwanted babies whose mothers refused to do the humane thing and abort them. 😎

On 8/23/2026 at 10:02 AM, FlorC said:

Alex Jones is not a conspiracy theorist.

"America’s conspiracy-theorist-in-chief Alex Jones," 14 October 2022

https://www.bbc.com/

1 hour ago, Srikcir said:

"America’s conspiracy-theorist-in-chief Alex Jones," 14 October 2022

https://www.bbc.com/

You don't understand.

It put "not" in bold.

That means it's obviously true. 😄

4 hours ago, impulse said:

Are you forgetting Crockett, the potty mouth? Not to mention, Houston and Austin and Dallas are Blue crapholes. (Which pains me, being from Galveston, with most of my family in Houston and Austin). Overlay the crime rate, and you'll get just about the same map.

Highest per capita violent crime in Texas occurs in places such as Texarkana, Beaumont, Lubbock, Amarillo, Bellmead, all red areas on your map.

8 minutes ago, alanrchase said:

Highest per capita violent crime in Texas occurs in places such as Texarkana, Beaumont, Lubbock, Amarillo, Bellmead, all red areas on your map.

I would dispute that unless you broke down what they classify as a "violent crime". Red areas and Blue areas have very different definitions. In lefty Blue areas, they plead down a lot of violent crimes so they can release them.

4 hours ago, impulse said:

I would dispute that unless you broke down what they classify as a "violent crime". Red areas and Blue areas have very different definitions. In lefty Blue areas, they plead down a lot of violent crimes so they can release them.

The classification of violent crime is the same for every city when calculating the per capita rate. Just admit you were wrong. You were using figures for number of offences. Obviously you will have more offences in larger cities. When it is done on a per capita rate the red areas on your map are the worst. Pleading down a case doesn't eliminate a reported crime happening, it just changes the punishment.

7 hours ago, Srikcir said:

"America’s conspiracy-theorist-in-chief Alex Jones," 14 October 2022

https://www.bbc.com/

bbc ...

Great argument srikcir.

On 8/23/2026 at 4:02 AM, FlorC said:

Some serious biased news reporting.

Alex Jones is not a conspiracy theorist.

(you want the truth ? you can't handle the truth -- from the movie : a few good men)

The reduced damages are a good start , but the lawfare continues.

I hope they don't get a dime from him.

Courts found Alex Jones liable for spreading false claims about Sandy Hook; describing him as a conspiracy theorist is a widely used characterisation, rather than a separate judicial finding that formally declares him one.

He's certainly a sick f**k and a c**t to boot. Hope he dies of arse cancer, slowly.

The fictional character you quoted that you hold to be a folk hero turned out to be a liar. Jessep is subsequently arrested.