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Thursday, Mar 7, 2013 1:47 PM UTC

NRA representative with alleged history of abuse barred from owning guns

Police confiscated NRA field rep Richard D’Alauro's 39 firearms after a domestic disturbance involving his ex-wife

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Topics: Guns, NRA, Gun Control, Violence, domestic violence, Violence Against Women, ,

NRA representative with alleged history of abuse barred from owning guns (Credit: David Acosta Allely via Shutterstock)

The National Rifle Association’s field representative for New York City and surrounding suburbs has been barred from owning guns.

Suffolk County authorities filed misdemeanor charges of assault and endangering the welfare of a child and a noncriminal charge of harassment against the NRA’s Richard D’Alauro following a domestic disturbance with his wife in their Long Island home. He pleaded guilty to the harassment charge, admitting that he intended to “harass, annoy or alarm” his wife “by subjecting her to physical contact,” according to a transcript of the proceedings obtained by the New York Daily News.

As a result of the charge, police confiscated a total of 39 firearms from D’Alauro’s home, and a judge barred him from owning or purchasing additional guns until October 2013. But after the fall deadline passes, police will be forced to return D’Alauro’s arsenal and he will once again be allowed to purchase more.

Federal and state law prohibit convicted domestic abusers from purchasing firearms, but those restrictions do not apply to D’Alauro because his offense is below the level of a misdemeanor.

And that is terrifying news for Maribeth D’Alauro, Richard’s now ex-wife.

In an interview with the Daily News, Maribeth said she suffered from “years of domestic violence” but was “too afraid to ever call the police.” But is now “finally able to talk about things I wasn’t able to talk about,” she said.

Her attorney, Sari Friedman, added, “A man who has an order of protection against him… is a poor spokesman for the NRA.”

A lawyer for the NRA field representative doesn’t share the sentiment, calling the charges against D’Alauro “absurd.” Adding that it is of “no significance whatsoever” that D’Alauro can’t own or possess a gun while working as a representative for the NRA.

But Maribeth thinks the charges against her husband will have little impact on his relationship with the powerful gun lobby. She sees her ex-husband as just the kind of “bully” the organization would want on it’s side, telling the Daily News that D’Alauro and the NRA are “cut from the same cloth.”

Katie McDonough is an assistant editor for Salon, focusing on lifestyle. Follow her on Twitter @kmcdonovgh or email her at kmcdonough@salon.com. More Katie Mcdonough.

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