WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected conservative conspiracy theory supporter Alex Jones’ latest attempt to block a nearly $1.5 billion defamation judgment he faces over false claims that the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting was a hoax.
The court rejected without comment Jones’ appeal of the state court’s ruling.
Last week, he urged the court to intervene urgently, saying that if the court did not act, his website, Infowars, risked becoming the satirical news site The Onion.
The proposed acquisition will be used to help fund payments to family members of Sandy Hook victims.
Jones’ lawyers warned in a memo last week that if the case was not delayed, “InfoWars will be taken over by its ideological enemy and destroyed.”
In December 2012, a gunman killed 20 first-graders and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.
After the shooting, Jones indicated on more than one occasion during his online appearances that it was an “organized event,” according to court papers.
The victims’ families then filed a lawsuit in Connecticut state court, alleging defamation as well as other violations of state law.
Jones, who owns InfoWars through his company Free Speech Systems, later lost his attempts in state court to appeal the ruling. It is also seeking bankruptcy protection.
The Onion failed in a previous attempt to acquire InfoWars through a bankruptcy auction, but Jones’ attorney said a new attempt is underway in Texas state court.