Aug 1, 2022 - Politics & Policy

Sandy Hook parents suing Alex Jones hire security, go into isolation

Julia Shapero

Alex Jones, the founder of the conspiracy website Infowars, addresses a crowd of pro-Trump protesters after they storm the grounds of the Capitol Building on January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC. Photo: Jon Cherry/Getty Images

The parents of a Sandy Hook shooting victim who are suing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones have gone into isolation and hired security after a series of "encounters" in Texas, the News Times reported.

The big picture: Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, the parents of 6-year-old Sandy Hook victim Jesse Lewis, are suing Jones for defamation.

Jones, founder of the conspiracy website Infowars, repeatedly claimed the shooting never happened and that Jesse, 19 other children and six adults did not die at the elementary school.

Jones, who has since recanted these claims, is facing multiple defamation lawsuits from Sandy Hook families who say Jones' claims led to harassment, according to Reuters.

Driving the news: Heslin and Lewis received security as a result of "some encounters this week outside of the courthouse" in Texas, the family's attorney Mark Bankston said, per the News Times.

More details: The parents suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of harassment from Jones' followers, a psychiatrist testified on Monday at the trial, according to the Associated Press.

Forensic psychiatrist Roy Lubit said Heslin and Lewis are frightened that some of Jones' followers are trying to kill them, the AP reported.
"The overwhelming cause of their pain is what Jones is doing," Lubit said, per the AP.

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Sandy Hook parents suing Alex Jones hire security, go into isolation

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