Alex Jones’ Infowars parent to liquidate, creditors say (1)

The families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims that Alex Jones defamed have asked a court to liquidate the assets of his far-right media company to pay the $1.5 billion judgment they are owed.

Free Speech Systems LLC, Jones’ bankrupt media company and the parent corporation of Infowars, should liquidate its assets to pay creditors, the Sandy Hook families said in an emergency motion filed Sunday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Southern District of Texas. The families have a $1.5 billion defamation suit against Jones, who falsely claimed the Sandy Hook massacre was a hoax.

Over the weekend, Jones made inflammatory comments about the executive in charge of running Free Speech Systems while it is in bankruptcy. Those comments raised concerns about the safety of Free Speech Systems’ security staff, a lawyer for the company said at a court hearing Monday.

“We’re very focused on just making sure that the safety of our employees and the safety of our security personnel are all protected,” said Annie Catmull, of O’ConnorWeschler PLLC.

Jones told listeners to form a human shield around the Free Speech Systems studio and told security staff not to take directions from Patrick Magill, Free Speech’s chief restructuring officer, Catmull said.

Free speech should be shut down because of the weekend’s events and because the families are unwilling to make a deal to settle the debt with Jones, a lawyer for lender PQPR Holdings Limited LLC told the hearing. PQPR is an Infowars vendor with ties to Jones and his family but is being administered separately and said it owes him at least $54 million in bankruptcy.

“We believe Free Speech Systems should cease operations,” said Stephen W. Lemmon, of Streusand, Landon & Ozburn, LLP, on behalf of PQPR.

Judge Christopher Lopez declined to entertain that idea during Monday’s hearing and said he would consider the conversion motion at a June 14 hearing.

“We have some interesting decisions to make in 11 days,” Lopez said.

Jones is also in the midst of separate bankruptcy proceedings.

The case is In re Free Speech Systems LLC, Bankr. SD Tex., No. 22-60043, 6/2/24.