New York Attorney General Letitia James and District of Columbia Attorney General Karl Racine today simultaneously announced that they will be suing one of the largest advocacy groups in the US - the National Rifle Association (NRA), demanding its dissolution over an alleged enormous fraud scheme organised by the NRA's long-term CEO Wayne LaPierre and some of the association's top managers. LaPierre and the NRA strongly deny any wrongdoing, defending their actions as normal business practices.
Here is what you need to know about the case that could see one of the most powerful lobbying groups in the US dismantled:
$64 Million Allegedly Embezzled From NRA's Coffers
- The NY attorney general first opened the case back in February 2019 and has since uncovered what she calls "a culture of self-dealing, mismanagement, and negligent oversight at the NRA". According to her, LaPierre and at least three other of the advocacy group's top managers used NRA funds to pay for their private expenses and luxurious lifestyles, spending around $64 million in a matter of three years.
- NRA CEO, Wayne LaPierre faces the greatest accusations, with James claiming that he spent the non-profit's funds on renting private jets to organise private vacations, most often in the Bahamas, for himself and his family. He also purportedly took around $1.2 million from the coffers to buy gifts, pay for private trips, and golf, as well as $3.5 million to pay travel consultants, along with several million more every year to hire private security for his entire family. LaPierre also reportedly arranged a $17 million contract for himself in case he retires from his post in the organisation, something that had not been approved by the NRA's board.
Lydia Ringer, 16, a junior at Roosevelt High School in Seattle, holds a sign that reads "NRA - Not Right for America," Tuesday, March 6, 2018, as she attends a rally against gun violence at the Capitol in Olympia, Wash. The rally was held on the same day Gov. Inslee was scheduled to sign a bill banning the sale and possession of gun bump stocks in the state of Washington.
© AP Photo / Ted S. Warren
- His former Chief of Staff Joshua Powell and former Treasurer Woody Phillips are also accused of misusing the NRA's funds, which are in large part collected from annual membership fees. They purportedly spent money on boosting their salaries, paying home allowances, and arranged contracts between the NRA and their relatives.
- General counsel John Frazer is another person that the two attorney generals are suing in relation to the NRA case, but unlike the three others, he is accused of failing to uncover the misspending and properly report it.
PR Company as Scapegoat
- The NRA's top managers didn't spend the funds directly, but instead channelled the money through Ackerman McQueen - a PR company that had long been working on managing the advocacy group's public image, the AGs say. Their spending on lavish lifestyles was allegedly registered as "out of pocket money" and resulted in bills for McQueen to the astonishing tune of almost $40 million per year.
- The scheme allowed them to avoid the attention of the NRA's board, which is essentially tasked with monitoring spending and preventing conflicts of interest.
Wayne LaPierre, Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of the NRA
© AFP 2023 / Saul Loeb
- The PR company's exorbitant bills, however, could not stay unnoticed and became public during an open internal conflict between LaPierre and then NRA President Oliver North in 2019. The latter opposed LaPierre's reinstatement as CEO, but he was eventually forced out of the advocacy group, although not before he warned the rest of the members of the imminent financial "crisis" that threatened the NRA.
- LaPierre then hired an outside counsel and with their help managed to eject Ackerman McQueen under the pretext of allegations that the PR company had failed to provide receipts for the annual bills of nearly $40 million and of exaggerating their expenses on PR campaigns, one of the AGs said.
'Ordinary' Business Expenditures
- The NRA CEO denies all accusations of spending the advocacy group's funds on maintaining a lavish lifestyle, claiming that all of his trips, including to the Bahamas, were business ones.
- At the same time, the New York attorney general's suit to dissolve the gun rights advocacy organisation came after the NRA entered a legal battle with NY Governor Andrew Cuomo in 2018. The group has accused Cuomo of pressuring the institutions his administration oversees, such as insurance companies and banks, to reconsider their cooperation with the NRA over alleged an "reputational risk". The NRA claims that it has lost tens of millions of dollars due to the governor's purported improper actions.
