Jury: Wayne LaPierre Guilty Of Living High On NRA's Money

After five days of deliberations, a New York jury yesterday held the National Rifle Association liable for financial mismanagement and found that Wayne LaPierre, the group's former CEO, corruptly ran the nation's most prominent gun rights group.

LaPierre and a senior executive at the NRA must pay a combined $6.35 million "for abusing the system and breaking our laws," New York Attorney General Letitia James, whose office brought the lawsuit against the organization, said following the verdict.

The jury determined that LaPierre's violation of his duties cost the NRA $5.4 million, though he already repaid more than $1 million to the organization.

Oh boy oh boy oh boy. It doesn't make up for the blood on his hands, but it's strangely gratifying, nonetheless.

The New York Attorney General's Office sued the NRA and its senior management in 2020, claiming they misappropriated millions of dollars to fund personal benefits -- including private jets, family vacations and luxury goods. The accusations came at the end of a three-year investigation into the NRA, which is registered in New York as a nonprofit charitable corporation.

The jurors, who began deliberating on Feb. 16, were asked to weigh transactions like hair and makeup for LaPierre's wife, payments or speaking fees to board members, and contracts with favored vendors willing to pay kickbacks.

LaPierre announced his resignation from the organization on Jan. 5, days before the start of the trial, citing health reasons, according to the NRA.

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