The National Rifle Association (NRA) board faces pressure to suspend the gun rights group’s chief executive, Douglas Hamlin, after revelations that Hamlin was involved in the sadistic killing of a cat. I am doing it.
The news comes as President Donald Trump canceled a scheduled appearance with Hamlin in Savannah, Georgia, next week. The Republican presidential candidate was scheduled to deliver the keynote speech at the NRA convention there. Organizers said they had conflicting schedules with President Trump.
An anonymous letter sent to the board by “concerned employees” of the NRA included a lengthy list of concerns about Mr. Hamlin, who was appointed in July in the wake of the organization’s corruption scandal.
Chief among those concerns is the new revelation that Hamlin, while serving as fraternity president at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor in 1979, was implicated in the gruesome murder of a pet cat named B.K. (Published by The Guardian).
“Anyone who would do something like that and try to cover it up is a sadistic person who cannot be trusted with the organization’s reputation or the safety of its employees,” the letter said.
The employees added, “If we do nothing, Doug Hamlin will destroy his chances of returning to the NRA.”
The letter was first reported by the Daily Mail.
Hamlin pleaded no contest to misdemeanor animal cruelty, and Hamlin and four of his fraternity brothers were expelled from the fraternity. According to local media reports at the time, the cat was captured, had its legs amputated and was set on fire.
Hamlin issued a statement to some media outlets saying he does not condone the actions that occurred more than 44 years ago.
“Although I was not directly involved in this unfortunate incident, I took responsibility as branch president. Since then, I have served my country, raised my family, and volunteered in my community. , started a business, worked with a Gold Star family, and raised millions of dollars for charity. I have strived to live a life above reproach,” he said.
The regulatory commission did not respond to requests for comment.
