‘Unconscionable and heinous:’ NRA Chief tortured a cat when he was fraternity president

*Trigger Warning: animal cruelty*

In another example of the National Riffle Association tapping only the best people for their leadership, the organization’s current CEO and Executive Vice President, Doug Hamlin, horrifically tortured and murdered a cat with his fellow frat brothers while in college.

Hamlin was later convicted, and the charges were eventually expunged from his record. However, the details of Hamlin’s sickening animal cruelty and attempted cover up are extremely chilling. The gruesome incident was far more serious and disturbing than your average fraternity shenanigans. Described by the judge as “unconscionable and heinous,” “cold and calculated,” and “unexcusable [sic] and unexplainable,” Hamlin’s violent actions raise questions about his ability to comprehend basic empathy. 

In December 1979, while a student at University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, Hamlin and four of his frat brothers captured and proceeded to torture and kill the fraternity house cat, B.K. The five students cut off the cat’s paws, hung it from a tree, and set it on fire—all because the cat “failed to use its litter box.” A passerby who heard the cat screaming reported the incident to the police. 

It’s truly unimaginable what pain and suffering that poor cat endured, and there’s absolutely no justification for treating an animal that way. At the time, Hamlin was the fraternity chapter president, which makes his involvement even more horrifying. For him, this was no instance of peer pressure or being afraid to stand up to his brothers. Hamlin was in full control of the situation, and he could have shut it down at any point. 

But Hamlin didn’t shut it down. In fact, he went the extra mile and initiated a cover-up to avoid facing any consequences.

Earl Carl, the Alpha Delta Phi cook at the time of the incident, claimed that Hamlin held a house meeting to intimidate and urge other fraternity brothers to clam up and not speak to the police or media. Carl said he was in the room during this meeting. Though he encouraged house members to speak up about the crime, Carl claimed he was physically threatened and told to keep quiet.

Resigning just one week after the cat’s murder, Carl eventually brought suit against the fraternity. He specifically identified Hamlin as “one of three people directly putting pressure on me to say nothing to the media or the police.”

Thankfully, Hamlin and his accomplices were held accountable, and the five pleaded no contest to charges of mutilating, burning, and killing a cat. District Court Judge S. J. Elden spent 15 minutes berating the five fraternity brothers, singling out Hamlin as particularly culpable because he “had the ability to prevent this from ever happening.” Before sentencing, Hamlin showed an alarming lack of remorse. “We did everything we thought we could do to resolve this thing,” he stated. “We think that now it’s gone a little too far.”

Though there was massive public outcry, the sentence was disappointingly tame. The students were ordered to complete 200 hours of community service which “must concern the areas of working with animal and animal husbandry.” They were given one-year deferred sentences, ordered to pay $360 in court fines, and ultimately expelled from their fraternity.

The sentence Hamlin and his frat brothers received doesn’t feel like a fitting punishment for the absolutely horrific things they did to that cat (not to mention how questionable it was to have them work in proximity to animals for their community service). But now, five decades later, this incident has alarming implications due to Hamlin’s new position at the NRA.

Hamlin was appointed to CEO in May this year to replace Wayne LaPierre, the NRA’s former CEO. LaPierre’s three decade long tenure came to an end when he was found to be misappropriating funds for personal use. It’s alarming, yet sadly on-brand, that the NRA thinks cat mutilators and shameless embezzlers are appropriate managers. When it comes to leadership, the NRA sure knows how to pick ‘em.

(Featured image: NRAPubs/YouTube)

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