Wit Davis who replaced Steve Hart in 2019 as the counsel to the NRA Board of Directors has resigned. The announcement was made in an email to the Board this evening. NRA President Charles Cotton announced it and he had NRA Secretary John Frazer email his announcement to the Board.
To My Fellow Board Members:
I am writing to inform you that Wit Davis has resigned his position with the NRA. I am sure he would want you to know he noted that “it has been an honor to serve this remarkable organization” and that he is available to help the transition to a new attorney.
The plan is for the Association to hire an attorney who will serve through the conclusion of the NYAG case and, if necessary, thereafter until a permanent replacement is found. We do not want to rush into hiring counsel to provide advice to the Board. Therefore, an interim solution will allow us to conduct a more comprehensive search.
Please join me in wishing Wit the best.
Charles L. Cotton
There can be many explanations for Mr. Davis’ resignation. It could have been that he was forced out by Bill Brewer, Alternatively, it could have been they just didn’t have the money to continue to pay him. Another alternative and one any sane person in his position should have concluded was that life is too short to deal with this crap anymore. I’m sure whatever the reason we will find out more in the coming days.
Like New York Attorney General Letitia James, the NRA is also putting a positive spin on Judge Joel Cohen’s ruling yesterday. Indeed, the headline on their release states, “NRA Prevails Over NYAG”.
The NRA’s release includes comments from NRA President Charles Cotton, former NRA President Carolyn Meadows, 1st VP Willes Lee, and, of course, outside counsel William Brewer III. Missing, however, from the comments on the ruling was anything from defendants Wayne LaPierre and John Frazer.
Charles Cotton – NRA Official Photo
“This is a resounding win for the NRA, its 5 million members, and all who believe in this organization,” says NRA President Charles Cotton. “The message is loud and clear: the NRA is strong and secure in its mission to protect constitutional freedom.”
The release says the NRA will continue to defend the remaining causes of action brought but that Letitia James can’t shut down the NRA.
While it appears that most of the heavy lifting before the court was done by William Brewer’s partner Svetlana Eisenberg, Brewer is still the one who gets quoted.
William Brewer – Brewer, Attorneys and Counselors bio photo
“We applaud the court’s recognition that dissolution is neither appropriate nor justified,” says William A. Brewer III, partner at Brewer, Attorneys & Counselors and counsel to the NRA. “We look forward to continuing the defense of the NRA – and proving that it acts in the best interests of its members and the Second Amendment freedoms in which they believe.”
I’m sure Mr. Brewer is look forward to continuing the defense of the NRA as legal fees now are reportedly 20% of the NRA’s total budget and it seems his firm is getting the majority of that.
Brewer who probably wrote the NRA’s over the top release goes on to say:
Brewer adds, “Today’s developments underscore the simple truth that since taking office in 2019, the Attorney General has pushed a contrived narrative about the NRA in her attempt to support a dissolution claim that is improper. This is a victory for not only the NRA, but all who believe in the right to free speech and association.”
Other comments came from Carolyn Meadows and Willes Lee:
“I’ve always said that the dissolution case was part of a political vendetta to take down the NRA,” says NRA Past President Carolyn Meadows. “I want to thank NRA members for helping us confront this abuse of power. They deserve an enormous amount of credit.”
NRA First Vice President Willes K. Lee said, “As an NRA member, this decision gives me great pride. It reaffirms an important belief: the NRA continues to serve as the greatest voice in the fight to protect Second Amendment freedom.”
The key things to remember about Judge Cohen’s ruling is that the remaining 14 causes of action will go to trial, that included in those are allegations of unjust enrichment and breach of fiduciary duty, and that he took a dim view of the current management of the NRA including that of Wayne LaPierre and John Frazer. Moreover, the ruling still could be appealed by James who has indicated she is pondering her legal options. I do doubt that it will be appealed as it was as much of a win for the Attorney General’s Office as it was for the NRA.
I am sure new NRA President Charles Cotton would be pissed off to see himself represented by a trio of monkeys. However, given his performance as Chair of the NRA Board of Directors Audit Committee, it is wholly warranted.
This has become even clearer thanks to a report in the blog NRA In Danger. Several good, honest, and forthright NRA staffers sent a memo to the Audit Committee outlining “top concerns”. I’ll let NRA In Danger tell the story of how Mr. Cotton decided to neither hear nor see the problems.
A major event in the beginning of the controversy over internal corruption came when NRA Treasurer “Woody” Phillips left suddenly in 2017, and the inexplicable decision was made to hire an honest Treasurer, Craig Spray. Several employees who were deeply concerned about what was going on wrote a “Top Concerns” memo for the Audit Committee, which was presented at an emergency meeting in July, 2018. Note this is nearly a year before the scandals burst into the open (April-May 2019). The Committee’s response? Its chair, Charles Cotton, left the room before the memo was presented. Its Vice Chair, who then served as chair, never gave Cotton the memo (obviously he knew Cotton didn’t want to hear of it).(emphasis mine) The committee (which is entrusted by the board with keeping everything honest) made no mention of the event to the board. Officially, nothing happened that day in July.
Read the “top concerns” memo yourself. It was an exhibit filed by the New York Attorney General in the NRA’s abortive attempt at bankruptcy. Given Mr. Cotton’s behavior that day and many others since, I am somewhat surprised that the complaint asking for dissolution has not been amended to make him a co-defendant.
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