NY Judge bans Wayne LaPierre from NRA for 10 years, rejects AG James demand to impose monitor over gun rights group

The National Rifle Association, in part because of its advocacy for the Second Amendment but also because of its alignment in support of former President Donald Trump, was targeted in 2020 for legal and financial destruction by a civil fraud lawsuit from Democratic New York Attorney General Letitia James.

That legal battle ended on Monday with a judge imposing a 10-year ban on former top executive Wayne LaPierre holding any fiduciary role with the NRA following his being found guilty by a jury in February of misspending millions of dollars of the organization's funds, Politico reported.

It wasn't a total win for AG James, though, as the judge, who in 2022 rejected her demand for a "corporate death penalty" to dissolve the entire organization, also rejected her demand to install an independent monitor to keep watch over the preeminent gun rights group.

LaPierre banned, ordered to repay, but no court-appointed monitor

In 2020, AG James filed suit against the NRA and sought to have the organization completely dissolved over allegations that top executives, including former Executive Vice President LaPierre, had fraudulently misspent millions of donor dollars on lavish perks for themselves.

LaPierre, who ostensibly resigned for health reasons in January after leading the NRA for more than 30 years, was ordered to repay nearly $4.4 million in addition to being banned from holding a paid position with the group for 10 years -- which was well short of the lifetime ban that James had asked for, according to Courthouse News.

New York Judge Joel Cohen reportedly chided the NRA for its prior "stunning lack of accountability" for top executives but did credit the organization for recent changes it has made and declined to impose a court-appointed monitor to oversee its activities as James had requested, and instead ordered the two sides in the dispute to negotiate proposed remedies.

An independent monitor would be "time-consuming, disruptive, and will impose significant costs on the NRA without corresponding benefits," the judge said, per Politico, and also raised serious concerns about a "speech-chilling government intrusion on the affairs of the organization."

Indeed, LaPierre and others had argued that a court-imposed monitor would be "equivalent to putting a knife straight through the heart of the organization and twisting it" and would send the message to donors and members that the gun rights group was "being surveilled by this attorney general in New York."

Reactions to the judge's decisions

AG James celebrated her partial win in a statement and said, "The NRA and its senior leaders broke the law and funneled millions of dollars in cash and lavish perks to themselves, their families, and NRA insiders. The damages portion of the case we presented, as well as the earlier trial before the jury, demonstrated that the NRA had a stunning lack of accountability and its leaders engaged in illegality and self-dealing."

"As a result of this case, Wayne LaPierre will be banned from the NRA for 10 years for spearheading this fraud, and the court called for additional proposed reforms to the NRA. After years of corruption, the NRA and its senior leaders are finally being held accountable," she added.

As for the NRA, it similarly spun the judge's split decision in the most positive light, according to Fox News, as attorney William Brewer III said, "Today's developments validate the NRA's reform efforts and commitment to good governance -- and recognize the First Amendment stakes of this case. Based on the record established at trial, the court rejected the NYAG’s request for a monitor."

NRA President Bob Barr said in a statement, "As the NRA committed to the court, we will continue to pursue improvements to our commitment to good governance. We thank the board for its support and salute our loyal members. Freedom prevails, again."

Likewise, LaPierre's successor, new Executive VP and CEO Doug Hamlin said the NRA would be moving "full speed ahead" now and added, "We have a mission to fulfill and elections to win up and down the ballot. This is a major step toward rebuilding the trust of the members, donors, industry, and our staff."

It does not appear that LaPierre has issued a public comment following the judge's decision to ban him from any paid role with the organization for a decade or the order for him to repay the NRA nearly $4.4 million in misspent funds.