Alex Jones agrees to appear at deposition in Sandy Hook case

FILE- In this Sept. 5, 2018, file photo conspiracy theorist Alex Jones speaks outside of the Dirksen building of Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

HARTFORD, Conn. — Infowars host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has agreed to appear at a deposition in Connecticut to answer questions in a lawsuit by relatives of some of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims, his lawyers said Thursday, a day after a judge ordered fines against Jones for defying orders to attend a deposition last week despite his claim of illness.

Jones will sit for a deposition April 11 and is asking the judge to put a hold on the daily fines, according to new court filings by his attorney, Norman Pattis. The fines begin at US$25,000 on Friday and increase by $25,000 each weekday he does not appear for questioning.

Pattis also asked the Connecticut Supreme Court on Thursday to hear an appeal against the fines. There were no immediately rulings on Jones' requests.

Lawyers for the Sandy Hook families, who are suing Jones for defamation for calling the 2012 school shooting a hoax, had no immediate comment. Twenty first graders and six educators were killed in the massacre in Newtown, Connecticut.

Connecticut Judge Barbara Bellis found the Austin, Texas, resident liable for damages to the families in November. A trial on how much he should pay them is set for later this year.