Former NRA Head Wayne LaPierre Banned From Group For 10 Years

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