THIS MORNING AT 9 AM EDT: Beleaguered Wayne LaPierre Set to Take the Stand in NRA Bankruptcy Trial…Again

Bankruptcy Trial Continues to Expose Depths of NRA Mismanagement

LaPierre Takes Stand Two Days After Another Embarrassing Video Comes To Light, Highlighting The Organization’s Wasteful Spending

The NRA’s bankruptcy trial will resume today at 9:00 a.m. EDT, with NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre set to again take the stand to be examined and cross-examined on the financial scandals that have taken over the organization over the past two years. The trial, which began April 5, has already revealed several embarrassing details for LaPierre and the NRA, chronicling the widespread mismanagement that took place under his watch.

LaPierre’s first time testifying during the trial was widely panned. The New York Times reported that LaPierre came “across as an antiquated, absent-minded professor” on the stand. The judge and even his own lawyer had to intervene to get him to listen and answer the question. 

CLICK HERE FOR A WEBEX LINK TO WATCH THE PROCEEDINGS

LaPierre’s testimony comes as the NRA finishes presenting their side of the case today and tomorrow, before closing arguments on Monday, May 3. The Judge has indicated that he expects to issue a written ruling within a week after the close of the trial. Hearing dates, times, and WebEx links to watch the proceedings can be found at Judge Hale’s webpage.

Highlights from the NRA’s disastrous past month, both from the trial and otherwise: 

1. After LaPierre’s Scandals Opened Legal Liability, NRA Board President Carolyn Meadows Admitted Burning and Shredding Documents Ahead of Subpoena. Board President Carolyn Meadows admitted in a deposition that she “shredded and actually burned” notes from phone calls and meetings in 2019 after NRA General Counsel John Frazer told her “they could be subpoenaed or used.” Frazer confirmed in earlier testimony he was aware of this prior testimony from Meadows about document destruction, adding “she later testified that it was someone else that she had discussed it with.”
2. Graphic Video Revealed Wayne LaPierre Clumsily Hunting Elephants. The secret video, obtained Tuesday by The New Yorker and The Trace, showed LaPierre repeatedly shooting an elephant in the wrong spot before a guide had to step in, and LaPierre’s wife killing an elephant, cutting off its tail, and holding it over her head exclaiming “Victory!” The article details how “LaPierre is a coddled executive who is clumsy with a firearm.”
3. New York Attorney General Office Filing Revealed Millions In Private Jet Travel by LaPierre and NRA Executives. A filing in the trial contained several spreadsheets detailing the widespread use of private jet travel by NRA executives, including the cost, dates, and locations of trips to places including Palm Springs, Las Vegas, and the Bahamas. The NRA’s lead fundraiser also testified that he was unaware of any written policy that required LaPierre to travel by private plane and himself flew without LaPierre by private jet, undermining the NRA’s claims that it was necessary for security reasons.
4. LaPierre Claimed Week-Long Annual Yacht Trips Paid For By Hollywood Producer Were “Security Retreat[s].” LaPierre testified that starting in 2013, he made annual trips to the Bahamas, staying on yachts owned by David McKenzie, a Hollywood producer and stakeholder of multiple NRA vendors. LaPierre claimed that he took these trips  because he was “looking for a place to be safe.” He admitted McKenzie paid for separate annual stays at Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island as well, and that he did not disclose the trips on his conflict of interest form. 
5. LaPierre Admitted to Not Informing Full NRA Board that He Intended to Put the NRA Into Bankruptcy. In previous testimony, LaPierre was unable to identify more than three members of the 70-plus person board of directors he informed of the bankruptcy. Board Member Philip Journey testified that he believed he was misled at the NRA board meeting prior to the Chapter 11 filing.  

For further, detailed information about the NRA and the consequences of the trial, please email [email protected]. Everytown has also chronicled court filings and news articles about the various NRA scandals at www.nrawatch.org. A specific page dedicated to filings in the bankruptcy can be found at https://nrawatch.org/case/nra-bankruptcy-proceedings/.