'King of the NRA': Civil trial scrutinizes lavish spending by gun rights group’s longtime leader

The longtime head of National Rifle Association operated as the “King of the NRA,” spending lavishly on himself, punishing dissent and showering allies with country club memberships and no-show contracts, a lawyer for the New York attorney general’s office told jurors Monday.

Wayne LaPierre’s methods as the NRA's executive vice president and chief executive officer allowed him to operate the powerful gun rights organization “as Wayne’s World for decades,” Assistant Attorney General Monica Connell argued in an opening statement in a civil trial scrutinizing his leadership and spending at the nonprofit.

LaPierre, who said Friday he is leaving the NRA after leading it since 1991,