On Dec. 14, 2012, just hours after a gunman murdered 20 children and six staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., Infowars host Alex Jones told listeners and watchers that the massacre was "staged" by opponents of Second Amendment rights.
“I said, ‘They are going to come after our guns, look for mass shootings,’” Jones said on his program. “And then magically, it happens.”
For years, the conspiracy theorist's show grew in popularity while he claimed grieving parents were paid "crisis actors" and that the shooting never happened. And for years, death threats and harassment from Jones' supporters forced victims' parents to live in fear.
Now, nearly two years after juries in Austin and Waterbury, Conn., awarded the families of Sandy Hook victims a total of $1.5 billion in damages for defamation, a Houston judge has said he will consider families' requests that Jones' media company be liquidated.
Victims' relatives still haven't seen a dime of the awards.
Here's a timeline of the legal fallout of Jones' inflammatory claims:
April 2018: First Sandy Hook defamation suits filed against Jones in Texas
Three parents of Sandy Hook victims — Meil Heslin, Leonard Pozner and Veronique De La Rosa — filed two separate defamation lawsuits against Jones and Free Speech Systems, the parent company of Jones' show "Infowars," over claims about the Sandy Hook shooting that Jones made in several broadcasts. The petitions were filed in state district courts in Travis County, where Jones' Austin studio was and still is located.
May 2018: 13 family members sue Jones in Connecticut
Thirteen family members of Sandy Hook victims and one FBI agent sued Jones and several shell companies connected to him in Connecticut for defamation and emotional distress caused by Jones' claims and his supporters' harassment and threats.
September and November 2021: In default judgments, Jones found guilty of defamation
After Jones failed to turn over documents such as "Infowars" recordings and refused to comply with court orders, judges in Texas and Connecticut entered default judgments against him, finding Jones guilty of defamation.
April 8, 2022: Sandy Hook parents sue again, alleging Jones hid millions of dollars in assets
The parents of Sandy Hook victims Jesse Lewis and Noah Pozner filed a lawsuit in Travis County alleging Jones tried to conceal assets from them and the courts by fraudulently diverting millions of dollars to himself, his parents, his children and shell companies. Marcel Fontaine, whom "Infowars" falsely claimed was a suspect in the 2018 Parkland, Fla., mass school schooling, also joined the lawsuit, which was filed in the 200th District Court of Texas.
April 2022: Five of Jones' shell companies file for bankruptcy protection
The case was dismissed after Sandy Hook families filed a motion opposing the bankruptcyfiling.
July 2022: Free Speech Systems files for bankruptcy in Texas
Free Speech Systems, Jones' main company, asked for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections, which would allow it to reorganize so that it can repay debtors and remain operational.
The company listed $14.3 million in assets, including almost $1.16 million in cash and almost $1.6 million in property and equipment, but also noted $79 million in liabilities, including a $54 million debt owed to PQPR Holdings, the company that supplies the supplements Infowars sells on its website.
That case continues today in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of the Southern District in Houston.
Aug. 5, 2022: Travis County jury finds Jones guilty of defamation, liable for $49.3 million in damages
After a two-week trial at an Austin state District Court, a jury found Jones owes $49.3 million to the parents of 6-year-old Jesse Lewis, who was killed in the Sandy Hook mass shooting, for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
October 2022: Connecticut jury awards $965 million in compensatory damages
A Connecticut juryfound Jones owes 13 families and an FBI agent $965 million in compensatory damages for defamation, infliction of emotional distress and violations of the state's Unfair Trade Practices Act.
Over the course of the monthlong trial, eight victims' relatives and an FBI agent testified that they endured years of harassment and threats from people denying the shooting happened, including at their homes, in public and online. Some said they received death and rape threats.
October 2022: Judge adds punitive damages, bringing Jones' total liability to $1.5 billion
The judge in the Waterbury, Conn., trial tacked on an additional $473 millionin punitive damages in the defamation lawsuit
December 2, 2022: Jones files for personal bankruptcy protections
Jones filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Houston.
His filing lists $1 billion to $10 billion in liabilities owed to 50 to 99 creditors, and $1 million to $10 million in assets.
June 2023: Jones spends lavishly while families' debts languish
The Associated Press reported in September thatJones, was continuing to spend lavishly— blowing through $93,000 in June 2023 — while airing complaints about his financial issues in "Infowars" broadcasts.
A New York Times investigation from March 2023 found Jones had transferred millions to family members, potentially out of reach of his creditors.
June 3, 2024: Families file emergency motion asking court to liquidate Free Speech Systems' assets
Families of several Sandy Hook victims on Sunday filed an emergency motion asking the federal Southern District Bankruptcy Court in Houston to order Free Speech Systems to turn its assets into cash.
Jones has put off liquidation by pursuing reorganization of the company, a prospect that families' lawyers wrote is hopeless and only serves to delay a resolution of their claims against the conspiracy theorist, as the American-Statesman reported. They asked the judge to change the case to a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, which could shut down Free Speech Systems.
Judge Christopher Lopez declined to rule on the motion Monday but said he will consider the request at a hearing scheduled for June 14, Bloomberg Law reported.
Statesman reporter Chuck Lindell contributed reporting.
