NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. bankruptcy judge on Wednesday blocked a settlement between families who have sued Alex Jones over his false claims about the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting, saying their attempt to divide the bankrupt conspiracy theorist's assets exceeded his court’s authority.
The decision complicates a proposed sale of Jones' Infowars platform, and could spur divisions between families who sued Jones and won nearly $1.3 billion in Connecticut court cases and those who won $50 million in Texas courts. The two groups of families had proposed a settlement that would guarantee the Texas families a 25% share of Jones' future payments made to the Sandy Hook families, with the Connecticut families taking 75%.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Lopez rejected the settlement at a hearing in Houston, saying the families were asking him to also divide up the assets of Infowars' parent company Free Speech Systems, despite the fact that the company had been dismissed from bankruptcy last year.
"I can't do that," Lopez said. “That case is closed."...............