A federal judge on Tuesday night rejected the auction sale of Alex Jones鈥� Infowars , criticizing the bidding process as flawed and the amount of money that families of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary shooting stood to receive.
The Onion had been named the winning bidder on Nov. 14 over a company affiliated with Jones, whose conspiracy theory platform was put up for sale as part of his bankruptcy case stemming from the that courts have ordered him to pay over falsely calling one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history a hoax.
The decision by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez of Houston to not approve the sale means Jones can stay at his Infowars headquarters in Austin, Texas. The Onion had planned to kick Jones out and relaunch Infowars in January .
鈥淲e are deeply disappointed in today's decision, but The Onion will continue to seek a resolution that helps the Sandy Hook families receive a positive outcome for the horror they endured,鈥� Ben Collins, CEO of The Onion鈥檚 parent company, Global Tetrahedron, posted on social media late Tuesday.
Lopez cited problems 鈥� but no wrongdoing 鈥� with the auction process. He said he did not want another auction and left it up to the trustee who oversaw the auction to determine the next steps.
The Onion offered $1.75 million in cash and other incentives for Infowars鈥� assets . First United American Companies, which runs a website in Jones鈥� name that sells nutritional supplements, bid $3.5 million.
The bids were a fraction of the money that Jones has been ordered to pay in defamation lawsuits in sa国际传媒icut and Texas filed by relatives of victims of the Sandy Hook shooting. Lopez said the auction outcome 鈥渓eft a lot of money on the table鈥� for families.
鈥淵ou got to scratch and claw and get everything you can for them,鈥� Lopez said.
Christopher Mattei, a lawyer for the Sandy Hook families who sued Jones in sa国际传媒icut, said they were disappointed in the judge's ruling.
鈥淭hese families, who have already persevered through countless delays and roadblocks, remain resilient and determined as ever to hold Alex Jones and his corrupt businesses accountable for the harm he has caused,鈥� Mattei said in a statement. 鈥淭his decision doesn鈥檛 change the fact that, soon, Alex Jones will begin to pay his debt to these families and he will continue doing so for as long as it takes.鈥�
Jones, who did not attend the proceedings, quickly went back on the air to applaud the judge's decision.
鈥淲e can celebrate the judge doing the right thing with the most ridiculous, fraudulent auction known in human history,鈥� he said.
Although The Onion鈥檚 cash offer was lower than that of First United American, it also included a pledge by many of the Sandy Hook families to forgo $750,000 of the auction proceeds due to them and give it to other creditors, providing the other creditors more money than they would receive under First United American鈥檚 bid.
Alex Jones' bankruptcy case
The sale of Infowars is part of , which he filed in late 2022 after he was ordered to pay in defamation lawsuits in sa国际传媒icut and Texas filed by relatives of victims of the Sandy Hook shooting.
Jones repeatedly called the shooting that killed 20 children and six educators a hoax staged by actors and aimed at increasing gun control. Parents and children of many of the victims testified in court that they were traumatized by Jones鈥� conspiracies and
Jones has since acknowledged that .
Most of the proceeds from the sale of Infowars, as well as many of Jones鈥� personal assets, will go to the Sandy Hook families. Some proceeds will go to Jones鈥� other creditors.
The auction overseer defends his decision
Trustee Christopher Murray had defended The Onion鈥檚 bid during a lengthy two-day hearing in Houston, testifying that he did not favor either bidder over the other and was not biased.
He also revealed that First United American submitted a revised bid in recent days, but he said he could not accept it because the Sandy Hook families in the sa国际传媒icut lawsuit objected.
The Onion valued its bid, with the Sandy Hook families鈥� offer, at $7 million because that amount was equal to a purchase price that would provide the same amount of money to the other creditors.
In a court filing last month, Murray's lawyers called First United American's request to disqualify The Onion's bid a 鈥渄isappointed bidder's improper attempt to influence an otherwise fair and open election process.鈥�
Jones' attorney, Ben Broocks, noted that the Sandy Hook lawsuit judgments could be overturned in pending appeals and got Murray to acknowledge that the Sandy Hook families' offer in The Onion bid could fall apart if that happens. That's because the percentage of the auction proceeds they would be entitled to could drop sharply and they wouldn't get the $750,000 from the sale to give to other creditors.
Auctioneer Jeff Tanenbaum on Monday defended both the value of the bid and its selection.
Putting Infowars up for auction
Up for sale were all the equipment and other assets in the Infowars studio in Austin, as well as the rights to its social media accounts, websites, video archive and product trademarks. Jones uses the studio to broadcast his far-right, conspiracy theory-filled shows on the Infowars website, his account on the social platform X and radio stations. Many of Jones' personal assets also are being sold.
Jones has set up another studio, websites and social media accounts in case The Onion wins approval to buy Infowars and kicks him out. Jones has said he could continue using the Infowars platforms if the auction winner is friendly to him.
Jones is appealing the money has been ordered to pay in judgments citing free speech rights.
Dave Collins, The Associated Press
