Plaintiffs are suing Jones in response to his claims that the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, which left 26 people dead, was a hoax. They asked a judge to hold him in contempt of court for failing to appear for a court-ordered statement last week.
At a hearing on Wednesday, Connecticut Superior Court Judge Barbara Bellis could also consider the plaintiffs’ request to impose a fine and incarcerate Jones until he appears to give evidence.
The libel lawsuit has already been decided in favor of the families of the shooting victims, with the judge ruling in November that Jones had breached his obligations by not providing documents and that he was liable for the damages caused to the plaintiffs.
Jones, founder of the far-right Infowars website, claimed the shooting, in which 20 children and six school workers were shot dead at the school in Newtown, Connecticut, was fabricated by the gun control advocates and the mainstream media.
In response, several parents sued Jones and Infowars, as well as its parent company, for libel in Austin, Texas, and Waterbury, Connecticut. Infowars is based in Texas.
Wednesday’s hearing comes a day after the families rejected Jones’ offer to pay $120,000 each of the 13 plaintiffs to settle the lawsuit.
Jones’ offer in the court filings included the following statement: “Mr. Jones sincerely apologizes for any distress caused by his remarks.”
Each of the plaintiffs immediately declined the settlement offer in court papers, saying: “The so-called offer is a transparent and desperate attempt by Alex Jones to escape a sworn public account of his misleading, on profit, against plaintiffs and in memory of their lost loved ones Sandy Hook.”