Life moves pretty fast. On Sunday, it was reported that Alex Jones, one of America’s loudest conspiracy theorists, was considering some outside-the-box options to deal with the multiple defamation suits over his bogus claims about the Sandy Hook school massacre of 2012. One solution? Simply file for bankruptcy, thus putting payments related to them on pause. And sure enough, that’s what he did.
As per The New York Times, three businesses associated with Jones, including his flagship Infowars, filed for Chapter 11 protection on Sunday. Filing for bankruptcy allows a corporation or partnership the chance to reorganize, keeping the lights on while givng them the chance to pay creditors over a period of time.
The move comes shortly before trials begin that will determine how much Jones must pay six families who’ve accused him of spreading lies about the Sandy Hook shooting. For years, Jones spread false theories claiming the massacre, which resulted in 28 deaths, including that of the perpetrator and his mother, was a “false flag” operation, set up by the U.S. government to confiscate guns.
As a result, families of the victims have found themselves harassed by those who believe Jones’ lies. Parents of one victim have had to move 10 times and now live in hiding. The families who filed the defamation suits claim Jones profited from his falsehoods. Jones has said he hasn’t, but he’s failed to produce sufficient records to bolster that claim.
Last fall, Jones lost two of the defamation suits. He has also been fined for failing to sit at a deposition and for calling out sick during a day he was set to testify, only to get busted recording his show the same day.
(Via NYT)