A jury in New York found officials of the National Rifle Association (NRA) liable for millions in damages on Friday.
Democratic Attorney General Letitia James of New York sued the gun-rights organization in August 2020 seeking the group’s dissolution. The jury found former NRA CEO and Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre liable for $5.4 million, Fox News reported.
The jury also ruled against former NRA Treasurer Woody Phillips and current NRA Secretary and General Counsel John Frazer, but did not find them liable financially, according to The Reload. A New York judge, Joel M. Cohen, ruled that James could not seek dissolution of the NRA in March 2022.
A six-person jury found that LaPierre, Phillips and Frazer failed to properly manage the group’s assets, The Reload reported. Cohen will have to determine how to address the group’s future, including potentially ordering an independent monitor to oversee the group.
James made a number of statements that showed hostility toward the NRA during her 2018 campaign for attorney general.
“The NRA holds [itself] out as a charitable organization, but in fact, [it] really [is] a terrorist organization,” she told Ebony magazine.
James also vowed to “target the NRA” in a July 2018 release by her campaign, vowing to “investigate the legitimacy of