New York Attorney General, Letitia James, called a press conference for Thursday about a "National Issue" and wow, did she not disappoint. In her press conference Thursday she called for the "dissolution of the NRA and the removal of CEO Wayne LaPierre from the leadership post he has held for the past 39 years, saying he and others used the group’s funds to finance a luxury lifestyle."
She methodically outlined how LaPierre and several lieutenants engaged in a "decades-long pattern of fraud to raid the coffers of the powerful gun rights group for personal gain...draining $64 million from the nonprofit in just three years."
SIXTY FOUR MILLION DOLLARS OVER 3 YEARS!
The Washington Post is reporting that James is asking a New York court to "force" LaPierre and three other deputies to repay the NRA for the money they stole. Furthermore, she reports that the NRA leaders engaged in a pattern of "flouting state and federal laws and signing off on reports and statements they knew were fraudulent, while diverting millions of dollars away from the NRA’s charitable mission to benefit themselves and their allies."
The four men she named were Wayne LaPierre, John Frazer (NRA general counsel), Woody Phillips (former treasurer), and Joshua Powell (former chief of staff). She is also seeking to bar the men from serving in a leadership role at a New Yorkk charity in the future.
In a statement, James said:
“The NRA’s influence has been so powerful that the organization went unchecked for decades while top executives funneled millions into their own pockets."
The investigation began 18 months ago and found “a culture of self-dealing, mismanagement, and negligent oversight at the NRA that was illegal, oppressive, and fraudulent."
On Thursday the D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine ALSO filed a lawsuit against the NRA Foundation, which has its headquarters in DC. Racine accused them of being a "puppet of the NRA".
In addition to the brazen theft from the NRA, LaPierre also arranged a "post-employment contract for himself with the NRA worth $17 million." He never got approval from the board for this deal. He just...signed the contract.
Twitter had MANY THOUGHTS:
BREAKING: The DC Attorney General is following the lead of NY AG Letitia James by filing suit against the @NRA, which has entities chartered in both New York and Washington, DC. https://t.co/FCUBErPsr2
— Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) August 6, 2020
Thoughts and prayers to the NRA. In Washington, we will continue to fight for commonsense gun safety. https://t.co/qj8Ivx4XZ0
— Jay Inslee (@JayInslee) August 6, 2020
I still often think about that time the NRA’s spokesperson said the media “love mass shootings” — the most gut-wrenching, heartbreaking, and anger-inducing kinds of stories a journalist hopes they never have to cover https://t.co/AVR1EEM3gB
— Josh Campbell (@joshscampbell) August 6, 2020
We will bring the NRA to justice and end their deadly agenda.
— David Hogg Text “our power” to 954-954 🌊 (@davidhogg111) August 6, 2020
Weird that the supporters of the NRA are not angry about their money bing ripped off for the personal pleasure of their leadership. That’s what this is about, not about the NRA’s political activities.
— Claire McCaskill (@clairecmc) August 6, 2020
Wayne LaPierre and his criminal accomplices destroyed the NRA by looting it, weaponizing it against American communities, and working with Kremlin proxies. They suckered NRA members as they lived lavishly off of their donations, and bought Republicans. @TishJames is ending it.
— Alexandra Chalupa (@AlexandraChalup) August 6, 2020
Literally, this is it:
The NRA, an organization that profits from death, is run by criminals? Color me surprised.
— Randi Mayem Singer (@rmayemsinger) August 6, 2020
The full lawsuit is below:
NRA Lawsuit Filed By AG James by Karoli on Scribd
