This time it might be for real.
Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones could soon be forced to stop airing his Infowars show and give up the company's property, including everything from desks and microphones to the Infowars brand name.
A state judge in Texas Wednesday ordered Infowars' assets to be turned over to a newly-appointed state receiver, who will sell them to pay the families of the Connecticut children killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. They won a $1.3 billion defamation case against Jones after he spread bogus conspiracies that the shooting never happened and the grieving families were actors. His listeners harassed the families for years.
The move paves the way for the receiver — or sheriffs — to start the process of seizing cash and property owned by Infowars and its parent company, Free Speech Systems, within days. The families, who've spent some three years in federal bankruptcy court trying to collect what Jones owes them, could start seeing their first payouts through the state court in weeks or months.
"The families are pleased that the court has placed InfoWars parent company into receivership, which will finally lead to accountability for Alex Jones' monstrously cruel harassment" said Mark Bankston, one of the attorneys for the families.
Judge Maya Guerra Gamble's order in Travis County, Texas district court appointing a receiver, Gregory Milligan, may herald a quick end to Jones' long run under his Infowars brand.
Most of the Sandy Hook families still want the Infowars name and property sold to the satirical site The Onion, which vowed to turn Infowars into a parody of itself.
Last December, a federal bankruptcy court judge in Texas stopped a sale to The Onion, saying the bankruptcy auction process was flawed. It was a win for Jones, who argued his company should have been sold to First United American Companies, which has ties to Jones and was widely expected to keep him on air.
The newly-appointed receiver has the power to "collect all accounts receivable… change the locks to all premises at which any property is situated… access all storage facilities, safe-deposit boxes, [and] real property… and exercise control over any website [of Jones]" according to the order. The order adds that "any Sheriff, Constable or officer of the Peace shall assist the Receiver in carrying out his duties and exercising his powers under this Order."
"Now that there's a receiver in place, Alex Jones is no longer going to control the Infowars brand. It's time to shut it down," said Avi Moshenberg, one of several attorneys for the families.
Legal experts agree, a sale to The Onion is more likely now that Infowars' fate has shifted to Texas state court.
"It's not a panacea, but it's a more favorable venue to be in," says Larry Ponoroff, dean and professor emeritus at Tulane Law School and a professor of legal practice at Wilmington University School of Law. "From a creditor's point of view, you're most often better off under state law … because the state court may be able to operate with greater speed and flexibility…[and fewer] constraints than the bankruptcy judge has to deal with.
The Onion did not respond to requests for comment on its plans, but the company has previously vowed to continue trying to buy Infowars to ensure "a positive outcome for the horror [the Sandy Hook families] endured."
There was no immediate comment from Jones' lawyers, but Jones himself railed against the judge on his show after the hearing, accusing her of overreach, and saying her order runs afoul of federal bankruptcy court orders.
"I'm pretty pissed off and wound up," he said.
Jones has long cast the defamation suits as part of the "Deep State" attempt to "terrorize", "stalk" and "defame" him and his family in an attempt to shut him down.
"This fight is your fight," he told listeners in advance of Wednesday's hearing, as he implored them to buy his product to help him pay his legal bills. "You are the resistance and this dog don't hunt without you."
But one way or another, Jones insists, he will stay on air.
If Infowars' brand and property are sold, Jones could still start a new company or work for someone else. But because the bankruptcy judge ruled Jones' behavior "willful and malicious," the bankruptcy will not erase Jones' debt, meaning families can keep claiming any money he makes in the future until he pays the $1.3 billion he owes them.
The Sandy Hook families sued Jones and his companies for defamation in Connecticut and Texas in 2018, after twenty young children and six educators were killed in the 2012 shooting. Jones falsely claimed the families staged their children's deaths in order to drum up support for gun control laws, and his followers stalked and tormented the families for years.
Both Jones and his businesses filed for bankruptcy, but his business's Chapter 11 protection was dismissed last year, allowing the fight over Infowars' assets to move to state court. Jones' personal assets – including real estate, cars, guns and watches will continue to be liquidated by the federal bankruptcy court.
Jones continues to appeal all the judgments against him, vowing to take the Connecticut case to the U.S. Supreme Court. He has until Sept. 5 to file his request.
He insists he doesn't have enough money to pay the families even a tiny fraction of what he owes them. But a court-appointed federal bankruptcy trustee says otherwise, accusing Jones of hiding his assets. Even in a best-case scenario, however, families likely will collect very little of the money they are owed.
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