The Daily Populous Friday June 7th, 2024 evening edition
Authored by cnn.com and submitted by nowahhh

Right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on Thursday moved to liquidate his personal assets, agreeing to demands from the families of Sandy Hook victims whom he owes more than $1.5 billion in damages over his lies about the 2012 school massacre.

The seismic move paves the way for a future in which Jones no longer owns Infowars, the influential conspiracy empire he founded in the late 1990s. Over the years, Jones has not only used the media company to poison the public discourse with vile lies and conspiracy theories, but also to enrich himself to the tune of millions of dollars.

Prior to Thursday, Jones had resisted converting his personal bankruptcy into a Chapter 7 liquidation. But facing mounting legal pressure, he reversed course and caved to the demands of the Sandy Hook families, who have still not seen a penny from Jones since juries in Connecticut and Texas found him liable in 2022 for defamation and emotional distress. His lawyers said in a filing that there was “no reasonable prospect for a successful reorganization” and that continuing down the path would only result in additional expenses incurred by Jones.

The legal maneuver ultimately “means [Jones’] ownership in Free Speech Systems is going to get sold,” Avi Moshenberg, an attorney who represents some of the Sandy Hook families, told CNN on Thursday night, referencing the parent company of Infowars.

“Converting the case to Chapter 7 will hasten the end of these bankruptcies and facilitate the liquidation of Jones’s assets, which is the same reason we have moved to convert his company’s case to Chapter 7,” Chris Mattei, another attorney representing Sandy Hook families, told CNN.

Jones technically has not controlled the Infowars business for some time, given that Free Speech Systems has also filed for bankruptcy protection. The company’s business has, thus, been under the supervision of a court appointed restructuring officer.

A hearing is scheduled for next Friday to determine the fate of Free Speech Systems’ bankruptcy.

But regardless of what happens in that case, Thursday’s legal move sets the stage for a court-appointed trustee to liquidate Jones’ personal assets, which includes his stake in Infowars.

The liquidation of Jones’ assets does not mean that Infowars will cease to exist. Several outcomes are possible. The court-appointed trustee could sell the business to another owner, for instance.

A representative for Jones did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday night.

MajorGrapefruit6718 on June 7th, 2024 at 03:53 UTC »

These hacks are such a plague in this country. The whole “fake news” projections of Trump just feed idiots like this money.

ChaoticScrewup on June 7th, 2024 at 03:36 UTC »

Six months from now he's gonna come back with InfoResurrection in some weird trust structure or as a "non-owner."

Odd_Land_2383 on June 7th, 2024 at 02:50 UTC »

Summary:

Alex Jones, the Infowars host, has filed for personal bankruptcy in Houston, Texas, following a court order to pay approximately $1.5bn in damages for falsely claiming that the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting was a hoax. The bankruptcy filing, which lists between 50 and 99 creditors, reveals that Jones possesses between $1m and $10m in assets and an astronomical debt ranging from $1bn to $10bn.

Jones' show's parent company, Free Speech Systems, had already filed for bankruptcy in July. This latest filing temporarily halts all proceedings in the Connecticut case, including a scheduled hearing on how the families would receive the money and which assets could be included. The bankruptcy proceedings could further delay payments and complicate the matter.

The families who lost loved ones in the shooting have alleged that Jones' lies led to years of death threats, intimidation, and other forms of harassment from his followers. Jones now acknowledges the attack was "100% real," a concession made during a separate defamation trial in Texas in August.

The future remains uncertain for Alex Jones as he navigates the complexities of bankruptcy proceedings and the ongoing defamation trials