New York
CNN Business
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The parent company of right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones filed for bankruptcy protection Friday, an unexpected move that comes as a trial is underway in Texas to determine how much he will have to pay in damages to families of two Sandy Hook victims who sued and won a default judgment against him.
Jones’ decision to file for bankruptcy protection for his company, Free Speech Systems, which runs the right-wing conspiracy channel Infowars, also comes after he was found legally liable in a separate defamation case in Connecticut.
In that Connecticut case, a different group of families similarly sued Jones over false claims he made about the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting.
Three smaller companies linked to Jones filed for bankruptcy earlier this year, briefly halting cases in both Texas and Connecticut. But the families suing Jones dropped the three smaller companies from their lawsuits so the cases could move forward against Jones and Free Speech Systems. Soon after, the three companies came out of bankruptcy protection.
In a strange legal twist, Jones also filed a complaint Thursday against his own company in Connecticut, a move that could further delay proceedings in the Connecticut trial.
The attorney representing Jones in the Texas defamation case, Federico Andino Reynal, made the disclosure about the bankruptcy filing at the end of court proceedings on Friday.
Reynal said the bankruptcy filing should not affect the ongoing trial. The judge overseeing the trial said proceedings in the case will continue on Monday.
It’s unclear, however, how the move will affect after the jury decides on damages. It’s also unclear how the measure will affect the case in Connecticut. An attorney representing the plaintiffs in Texas had no immediate comment. Christopher Mattei, an attorney representing some of the Sandy Hook families in Connecticut, issued a scathing statement to CNN about Jones’ move.
“Just two days before jury selection begins in Connecticut, Mr. Jones has once again fled like a coward to bankruptcy court in a transparent attempt to delay the showdown on families he has been hurting for years,” he said. Mattei. “These families have infinite patience and remain determined to hold Mr. Jones accountable in a Connecticut court.
The bankruptcy filing filed in court Friday sheds enormous light on Jones’ opaque business.
The filing said Free Speech Systems had grossed $13.1 million in 2021 and $9.3 million in gross profit for the first five months of 2022.
But the filing said Free Speech Systems had $14.3 million in liabilities and equity as of May 31, 2022.
Earlier this week, the attorney for the two Sandy Hook families suing Jones in Texas, Mark Bankston, asked a jury to award his clients $150 million in damages.
“Now that’s a huge verdict, for sure, but it’s one that will do justice to the level of wrong done in this case,” Bankston told the jury in his opening statement.
“The harm done to parents, grieving parents of murdered children who have had to endure 10 years of the most despicable and vile smear and smear campaign in American history,” Bankston added.
Bankston said the $150 million figure amounted to $1 for every person who believes false information about the Sandy Hook shooting pushed by Jones, which he argued is about $75 million.
The additional $75 million would be to compensate the parents for the emotional and mental anguish they have suffered over the past decade due to harassment by Jones and his followers.