Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is trying to hang on to his personal social media accounts so he can resurrect his career after paying off the families he traumatized by falsely claiming the deadly Sandy Hook school shooting was a hoax.
Lawyers for Jones argued in court Friday that the accounts shouldn't be sold in bankruptcy proceedings tied to the nearly $1.5 billion in damages he owes for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress, the Associated Press reported.
Jones contends that his accounts are part of his "persona" and aren't owned by his Infowars media platform or parent company Free Speech Systems, AP said.
Jones has nearly 3 million followers on X and also has accounts on Telegram, Gab, Parler and other websites, and multiple parties have expressed interest in buying them, according the bankruptcy trustee handling the liquidation of his assets.
Auctions are scheduled in November and December, AP said.
On Friday, Jones's lawyer Vickie Driver said in court in Houston, "If certain parties were the successful bidder, there would be litigation."
"There is value to some folks in buying these assets and using them in one way, and value to other folks to use them in another way," Driver said.
Jones has vowed to continue his talk shows after his company is sold, possibly by creating a new website and using his social media accounts, or by having his supporters buy Infowars' assets and hire him as an employee.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez didn't rule on the matter and scheduled another hearing after saying a proposed order that would allow the sale of the accounts but preserve Jones' right to sue over ownership was unclear.
"I want a purchaser or a bidder to know exactly what they think they can buy. I don't want to create litigation risk for a potential purchaser," the judge said.
Jones and his company filed for bankruptcy protection in 2022 after repeatedly being found liable for statements he made about the mass shooting that killed 20 first-graders and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012.
Jones falsely claimed the massacre was a hoax perpetrated by "crisis actors" to encourage passage of gun control legislation but has since acknowledged the killings occurred,
During civil trials in Texas and Connecticut, relatives of many victims testified they were traumatized by Jones' conspiracies and harassed and threatened by his followers.
Jones is appealing the verdicts on free speech grounds and questioning whether his statements caused the harassment and threats.
