NY judge hands former NRA head Wayne LaPierre a 10 year ban but declines to appoint monitor

NEW YORK (AP) — A New York judge on Monday banned Wayne LaPierre, the former head of the National Rifle Association, from holding a paid position with the organization for a decade, but declined to appoint an independent monitor to oversee the gun rights group.

The split decision from Judge Joel Cohen came on the final day of arguments in the second stage of a civil trial brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

The first phase of the trial, decided in February by a Manhattan jury, found LaPierre and another deputy liable for misspending millions of dollars on lavish trips and other personal expenses.

Ruling from the bench, Cohen said the state’s request for a monitor was not the correct remedy, suggesting the oversight mechanism would be “time-consuming, disruptive and will impose significant costs on the NRA without corresponding benefits.”

Cohen also said he had concerns about “speech-chilling government intrusion on the affairs of the organization.”

He said the same First Amendment concerns did not apply to whether LaPierre could return to the organization anytime soon.

“This relief is about the privilege, not the right, to serve as an officer or director of a New York not-for-profit,” he said.

LaPierre, who sat in the front row as the judge read his ruling, did not respond to questions as he left the courtroom.

Earlier Monday, LaPierre told the judge that appointing a monitor to oversee the gun rights group’s finances would be “equivalent to putting a knife straight through the heart of the organization and twisting it.”

He described the appointment of a monitor as an existential threat to the group because it would send a message to prospective members and donors that the NRA was “being surveilled by this attorney general in New York.”

An attorney for the NRA, Sarah Rogers, echoed those concerns. She said the group had implemented new controls since the jury's verdict, including bringing on fresh board members and a new compliance team.

But Assistant Attorney General Monica Connell dismissed those efforts as lackluster, arguing that the old guard leadership effectively still controls the organization.

In his ruling, the judge said the NRA's reaction to the February verdict had been “decidedly mixed" and accused the group's leaders of displaying “a stunning lack of accountability" about their own culpability in the yearslong mismanagement.

He invited attorneys for the NRA and the state to submit further proposals on reforming the organization.

LaPierre served as the group’s CEO and executive vice president for more than three decades. He resigned in January on the eve of the first phase of the trial.

Those proceedings cast a spotlight on the leadership, culture and financing of the organization, with state lawyers accusing LaPierre of siphoning millions of dollars from the organization to fund his lavish lifestyle, including trips on private jets, expensive suits, and family vacations.

The jury ordered LaPierre to repay almost $4.4 million to the organization, while the NRA’s retired finance chief, Wilson “Woody” Phillips, was ordered to pay back $2 million.

The second phase of the proceeding was a bench trial, meaning there was no jury and the judge handed down the verdict.

James sued the NRA and its executives in 2020 under her authority to investigate not-for-profits registered in the state. She originally sought to have the entire organization dissolved, but the judge ruled in 2022 that the allegations did not warrant a “corporate death penalty.”

The latter phase of trial came as the NRA faces an internal power struggle, pitting its new reform-minded chief executive, Doug Hamlin, against longtime leaders who remain close to LaPierre.

The NRA has seen a precipitous drop in revenue and lost more than 1.3 million members since 2018, according to an expert witness called by the group.

Wayne LaPierre, former CEO of the National Rifle Association, leaves a courthouse in New York, Monday, July 29, 2024. A New York judge declined to appoint an outside monitor to oversee the finances and internal policies of the National Rifle Association. But he said he would bar LaPierre, the group's former leader, from holding a paid position in the organization for a decade. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Charles Cotton, former president of the National Rifle Association, leaves a courthouse in New York, Monday, July 29, 2024. A New York judge declined to appoint an outside monitor to oversee the finances and internal policies of the National Rifle Association. But he said he would bar Wayne LaPierre, the group's former leader, from holding a paid position in the organization for a decade. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Bob Barr, president of the National Rifle Association, leaves a courthouse in New York, Monday, July 29, 2024. A New York judge declined to appoint an outside monitor to oversee the finances and internal policies of the National Rifle Association. But he said he would bar Wayne LaPierre, the group's former leader, from holding a paid position in the organization for a decade. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Wayne LaPierre, former CEO of the National Rifle Association, waves to someone as he leaves a courthouse in New York, Monday, July 29, 2024. A New York judge declined to appoint an outside monitor to oversee the finances and internal policies of the National Rifle Association. But he said he would bar LaPierre, the group's former leader, from holding a paid position in the organization for a decade. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Wayne LaPierre, former CEO of the National Rifle Association, leaves the courtroom for an afternoon break in the second phase of a civil case that New York Attorney General Letitia James brought against the NRA, Monday, July 29, 2024, in New York. LaPierre told a New York judge on Monday that the appointment of an independent monitor to oversee the gun rights group's finances would be "equivalent to putting a knife straight through the heart of the organization and twisting it." (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

FILE - Wayne LaPierre, former CEO of the National Rifle Association walks in the hallway at civil court in New York, Monday, July 15, 2024. LaPierre told a New York judge Monday, July 29, that the appointment of an independent monitor to oversee the gun rights group’s finances would be like "putting a knife straight through the heart of the organization and twisting it.” (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah, File)

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — English soccer fans have been waiting almost a lifetime to win another World Cup. Just imagine what British sailing fans feel when the America's Cup rolls around.

Their best yachtsmen have been trying — and failing — for 173 years to conquer the Holy Grail of sailboat racing.

The schooner America won the race's very first edition back in 1851 in a loop around the Isle of Wight, where Queen Victoria herself was in attendance as the Royal Yacht Squadron was bested off the English coast. Since then, no country has challenged to win the Auld Mug as many times as Britain — only to always come up short.

And this for a country that holds a record 30 Olympic medals in sailing and whose ships used to rule the oceans in the times of empire.

Ben Ainslie, the most successful sailor in Olympic history with four golds and a silver, heads the latest British effort to end the wait for the oldest international trophy in sport.

“It’s massive for us because we’re a proud sporting country and our maritime heritage is massive for us as an island nation,” Ainslie told The Associated Press after a race in Barcelona. “The America’s Cup is the one international sporting trophy Britain has never won. And it originated in the UK.

"So that’s a big motivator for us to try, as we say, and get the America’s Cup back home.”

Ainslie's description of the weight of history on his team's shoulders echoes that of England's soccer team, whose anthem, “Football’s coming home,” sums up the mission of trying to lift its first title since winning the 1966 World Cup.

While the country is soccer crazed and its wealthy Premier League the envy of the sport, Britain's history has for centuries been closely linked with its nautical might.

The 47-year-old Ainslie has the unique role at the America’s Cup in his dual position as INEOS Britannia's skipper and its team principal. That means he runs the team in every facet and calls the shots on the waves from his starboard cockpit on the 75-foot foiling monohull.

Britannia has made a promising start and topped the challenger standings in the opening round-robin phase, which included beating a strong Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli of Italy twice. Britannia will get to pick its rival — from the Italians, Americans and Swiss — for the semifinals starting on Saturday. The last boat standing will win the Louis Vuitton Cup and face defending champion New Zealand in the America’s Cup finals.

Ainslie already knows what it feels like to win the America’s Cup, albeit for the Americans.

He was on the 2013 winner Oracle Team USA. After the Americans fell into a large early deficit against New Zealand, Ainslie, a tactician, was promoted from the backup crew to the race crew. New Zealand expanded its lead to 8-1 and match point, but Ainslie helped the American-flagged crew pull off one of the greatest comebacks in sport, winning eight straight races to become the first British sailor to win the America’s Cup in 110 years.

As to why the cup has proven so elusive to a nation that excels at sailing, Ainslie insists that it is just “incredibly hard” to dethrone a sitting champion in a winner-takes-all event like no other — the champion sets the rules, picks the venue and gets a ticket to the final of the next edition.

“(So) much goes into the competition, the technicality, the boats and the competitive nature of it," he says. "And the fact that we know that the defender is really in the hot seat. They’re rewriting the rules for the next event and are in the final. So if you have a strong defender, like the Team New Zealand that we’ve seen in previous America’s Cups, it’s very, very hard to beat.”

Britannia has the backing of billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, the owner of petrochemicals giant INEOS who bought into storied soccer club Manchester United this year. His sailing outfit also shares a technical director and design expertise with the Mercedes Formula 1 team.

Ainslie first challenged for the cup in 2017 in Bermuda. INEOS came aboard the following year and they made a run at the cup in 2021 in Auckland. Both times New Zealand won.

The America’s Cup was born some four decades before the modern Olympic Games, and only four countries have even won it. The Americans successfully defended the title 24 times until that incredible 132-year run ended in 1983 at the hands of the Australians. The Swiss were the last country to join the select club.

The first step for the Brits is emerging as the best challenger. They haven’t reached the match final since 1964.

“The only thing we have in our mind is trying to win the thing. I think we can win it,” Ainslie says. “If we can keep that momentum going, we can be dangerous. Are we going to do it this time or not? Only time will tell.”

AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

FILE - Skipper Ben Ainslie steers the boat as the British team crosses the finish line in the second fleet race of the SailGP series in Sydney, Feb. 29, 2020. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft, File)