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8 ¦ JULY 27, 2020 NEWS

Court Upholds Sanction Against Alex Jones,
Who Threatened a Lawyer

By Robert Storace

The Connecticut Supreme
Court upheld a lower
court judge’s sanctions
against controversial radio
host Alex Jones following a
rant on his show in which he
targeted one of the plaintiffs
attorneys in a defamation case
over the Sandy Hook mass
shooting.
Norm Pattis, Jones’ former
attorney, had argued that the
comments and threats aimed
at Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder
attorney Chris Mattei were
protected speech. Alex Jones. Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM

The law firm had filed several defamation suits him. Mattei had run as a candidate for attorney gen-
against Jones, the Austin, Texas-based host of In- eral as a Democrat.
foWars. It sued on behalf of families of victims of Mattei and the firm have said showing the attorney’s
the Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting photo on the air was threatening. In addition, the Su-
in December 2012. Jones originally said the shoot- preme Court transcript showed that Jones, while
ing was a government hoax, but has since walked showing the photo, had said, “Oh nice little Chris Mat-
back those statements. tei. … You think you’ll put this on me. Anyways, I’m
Connecticut Supreme Court Chief Justice Rich- done. Total war. You want it? You got it. I’m not into
ard Robinson, in writing for the court’s 7-0 majority, kids like your Democratic party. … So get ready.”
highlighted the comments Jones made on his June At another point, according to the transcripts,
14, 2019, show in which Pattis was a guest. Jones said, “One million dollars to put your head on
Jones, on his show, had accused Mattei, whose a pike.”
picture he showed on the air, of planting child Superior Court Judge Barbara Bellis issued sanc-
pornography in email metadata files sent to the con- tions against Jones soon after the comments on his
troversial radio host. show. They included barring Jones from filing a mo-
Jones said, “I’m here to tell the little pimps, the tion to dismiss the lawsuit.
Senator [Chris] Murphys and the prosecutor, the Now, in a 36-page ruling, the high court found
Obama-appointed prosecutor who’s doing all of this, the trial court had the “inherent authority to im-
… I don’t need to talk about poor dead kids to have pose sanctions against an attorney and his client for
listeners.” a course of claimed dilatory, bad faith and harassing
As it relates to Mattei, Jones zoomed in on a photo litigation conduct.”
of the attorney and linked him with the Democratic Robinson continued: “Jones’ speech was calculated
Party, then used a homophobic expletive to refer to to interfere with the fairness of the proceedings as it

CONNECTICUT
Law Tribune