Sandy Hook Parents Get Their Turn Against Jones

Alex Jones' legal and financial troubles for spreading lies about the Sandy Hook mass shooting reach a critical point Tuesday as a trial begins in Texas to determine how much he owes. And as the New York Times reports, parents of the young victims will testify themselves about how Jones' conspiracy theories that the shooting was a hoax caused them even greater suffering—and made them the target of threats and abuse from those who believed the lies. Jones, who has lost three lawsuits over the 2012 massacre, has since disavowed his claims and offered to pay settlements, but his offer was rejected. Tuesday's trial in Austin to determine damages will be followed by two similar trials next month, one in Connecticut and a second one in Texas.

“We’re very glad the day is here,” says Mark Bankston, attorney for the families suing Jones in this first trial, per the AP. “We’re looking forward to telling our clients’ story.” The court, for example, will hear from Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, whose 6-year-old son, Jesse, was killed at Sandy Hook. After Neil Heslin spoke of his son's death on TV, Jones publicly suggested he was lying. The trials could strike a "potentially major financial blow" to Jones and his media empire (which he already has put into bankruptcy protection), notes the AP. The Times uses the phrase "potentially ruinous." Jones has cited an unspecified "medical issue" and may not be in court himself on Tuesday or throughout the trial. The Sandy Hook shooting killed 20 first-graders and six adults. (More Alex Jones stories.)