The New York Attorney General’s Office announced last Friday that a jury found current and former National Rifle Association (NRA) executives liable for corruption and financial misconduct. After a six-week trial, the jury determined that NRA executives Wayne LaPierre and Wilson “Woody” Phillips used NRA funds for personal gain. These individuals also reportedly failed to administer charitable funds appropriately. Consequently, the verdict requires LaPierre to pay $4.35 million, while Phillips is penalized with a $2 million fine.
Letitia James, New York’s Attorney General, expressed satisfaction with the verdict and said: “This verdict is a major victory for the people of New York and our efforts to stop the corruption and greed at the NRA.”
In reaction to the verdict, the NRA released a statement maintaining that it had been manipulated by a few top executives. The NRA believes that the lawsuit was motivated by political animosity and demonstrated that it had good governance procedures in place.
A non-jury trial is scheduled to address the state’s demand for non-monetary relief against the NRA. Possible outcomes include appointing an independent compliance monitor, permanently barring LaPierre and Phillips from NRA leadership positions, and prohibiting the NRA from seeking charitable contributions in New York.
In 2020, James sued the NRA with the initial objective of shutting down the entire organization for fraud. Following the lawsuit, the NRA filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2021 and reincorporated in Texas. However, a federal bankruptcy judge subsequently dismissed the bankruptcy filing for not being in “good faith”. New York courts have rejected several attempts by the NRA to dismiss the lawsuit.