United States Navy Veterans Association
Encyclopedia
The United States Navy Veterans Association (USNVA) is a tax-exempt Veteran
s Organization that claims to have a national headquarters in Washington, D.C.
It claimed that its purpose was to support the U.S. Navy
, and to assist veterans and members of the U.S. Armed Forces
, and their families.
The Association claimed to be a national organization with 43 U.S. chapters and over 66,000 members.
USNVA has been the subject of recent investigative reporting
, which has resulted in official investigations in several states and the removal of its listing from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
website. The organization's national headquarters in Washington DC proved to be a rented post office box, rather than an actual physical office location. The true identity of the USNVA leader, "Bobby Thompson," is not known, because that identity was stolen from someone unaffiliated with the USNVA. USNVA operations have ceased and an arrest warrant has issued for its leader.
USNVA claimed to be the current form of charitable groups that date back to 1927, although the USNVA itself first filed with the Internal Revenue Service
in 2002. The Association claimed 66,000 members.
The Association's stated mission, in summary, was to: Support the U.S. Navy; provide assistance to war veterans, members of the U.S. Armed Forces, and their families; and "the support of legislative action to provide to our service personnel, veterans, and their dependents, widows and orphans, the remuneration and benefits they truly deserve."
According to the Association's website, there are 41 state Chapters, along with Chapters in Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico and Divisions in Panama and the Philippines. However, the New Mexico Attorney General claims that the addresses given for the New Mexico chapter are for vacant lots.
The USNVA website lists the MacMurray, Petersen & Shuster LLP law firm in New Albany, Ohio as its General Counsel; Legislative Associates, Inc. of Stillwater, Minnesota as its Legislative and Public Policy Counsel, and Rubin & Associates, P.A. of St. Petersburg, Florida as its Special Counsel. It also hired additional lobbyists to gain the right to solicit in Virginia.
published a special about the USNVA in March, 2010. The report makes a number of allegations about the Association. These include that:
Times reporters spoke with Mr. Thompson at his residence once. On a later visit in December, 2009, his leased residence was found vacant; according to the landlord, no forwarding address was provided.
In response, the USNVA's attorney has denied all of the Times' assertions, calling the investigation "flawed," and saying officers don't want to speak to the Times reporters because of their "disreputable tactics and stories and biases."
The American Institute of Philanthropy
has testified before Congress about inefficiency and wrongdoing at veterans charities. AIP features USNVA in a cover article for the December 2010 publication of its Charity Rating Guide & Watchdog Report: Phantom Charity Takes Flight, Leaves Veterans Stranded. According to the article, it is "unlikely be recovered and used to help deserving veterans.”
, a Washington-based lawyer, was retained to get the USNVA the right to solicit in Virginia, and he worked with a man who claimed to be Bobby Thompson, the Chief Financial Officer of USNVA. In March 2010, the St. Petersburg Times published a series indicating that the USNVA was a one-man operation fradulently soliciting money as a veterans' charity. When asked by the St. Petersburg Times whether Wright had ever spoken with anyone at the USNVA other than Thompson, Wright refused to answer citing attorney-client privilege. In May 2009, Wright met with then-Attorney General Bill Mims
to get the bar reversed, but on August 18, 2009, the USNVA received a letter stating that the Attorney General concurred with the bar.
Following that letter, Thompson, who was a Florida resident, began to donate to Virginia politicians. In 2009, Mr. Thompson made $78,375 in political contributions
. $67,500 was directed to Virginia
politicians, with the largest share being $55,500 in contributions to the successful campaign of Virginia Attorney General
Ken Cuccinelli
(R
). Thompson was Cuccinelli's second-largest campaign donor. Out of the $67,500 Virginia contributions, Thompson made only one $1,000 donation to a Democratic candidate.
When questions were initially raised about USNVA, all other Virginia politicians gave the contributions from Thompson to other veterans' organizations, but Cuccinelli initially did not, despite calls from Virginia Democrats
. Cuccinelli's spokesman said "if Mr. Thompson was convicted
of wrongdoing relative to the misappropriation of funds, and contributions to our campaign came from money that was supposed to go to active duty military or veterans, we would donate those contributions to military support organizations here in Virginia." A month later in June, a Ciccinelli spokesman said $55,500 would be set aside in a restricted account pending the outcome of the investigation into Thompson and USNVA.
Thompson also made an unsolicited $1,000 contribution to Virginia Senator
Patsy Ticer
(D) in 2009. Wright later contacted Ticer's office, asking for assistance to make it easier for the Association to operate in Virginia. Ticer introduced Virginia Senate Bill 563 that, among other purposes, exempted tax-exempt veterans' organizations such as the USNVA from having to register with Virginia regulators. The bill was unanimously approved by the Virginia House
and Senate
. After receiving the Thompson contributions, Cuccinelli met with Wright on February 15, 2010 to discuss the legislation which had passed the State Senate. After learning about the March St. Petersburg Times reports, Ticer asked Governor
Bob McDonnell
(R), who received a $5,000 contribution from Thompson, to veto
the bill she sponsored. On April 11, 2010, Wright asked Ticer to withdraw her veto request. However, the Governor signed the bill on April 12, 2010. The new law took effect on July 1, 2010. Both Senator Ticer and Governor McDonnell have given the contributions from Thompson to other veterans groups.
Jim Webb
(D-VA) wrote a letter to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs asking for the removal of the U.S. Navy Veterans Association's listing from the VA website of veterans organizations, citing recent media reports and official investigations. The VA removed the listing by the next day, noting that listing an organization does not constitute an endorsement
.
, Ohio
, Hawaii
, Missouri
, and Florida
- are investigating the Association. The USNVA is currently banned from soliciting in at least the states of New Mexico and Hawaii. In August 2010, Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray announced that a nation-wide arrest warrant had issued for Bobby Thompson, who had stolen the identity and Social Security Number of a victim who was not connected to the USNVA. Cordray stated, “We know he bilked Ohioans out of at least $1.9 million, and we estimate that nationally he collected at least $20 million.”
Veteran
A veteran is a person who has had long service or experience in a particular occupation or field; " A veteran of ..."...
s Organization that claims to have a national headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
It claimed that its purpose was to support the U.S. Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
, and to assist veterans and members of the U.S. Armed Forces
United States armed forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...
, and their families.
The Association claimed to be a national organization with 43 U.S. chapters and over 66,000 members.
USNVA has been the subject of recent investigative reporting
Investigative journalism
Investigative journalism is a form of journalism in which reporters deeply investigate a single topic of interest, often involving crime, political corruption, or corporate wrongdoing. An investigative journalist may spend months or years researching and preparing a report. Investigative journalism...
, which has resulted in official investigations in several states and the removal of its listing from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
United States Department of Veterans Affairs
The United States Department of Veterans Affairs is a government-run military veteran benefit system with Cabinet-level status. It is the United States government’s second largest department, after the United States Department of Defense...
website. The organization's national headquarters in Washington DC proved to be a rented post office box, rather than an actual physical office location. The true identity of the USNVA leader, "Bobby Thompson," is not known, because that identity was stolen from someone unaffiliated with the USNVA. USNVA operations have ceased and an arrest warrant has issued for its leader.
Organization overview
The USNVA is a tax-exempt organization headquartered in Washington, D.C. It received tax-exempt status from the IRS as a 501(c)(19) veterans' organization.USNVA claimed to be the current form of charitable groups that date back to 1927, although the USNVA itself first filed with the Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
in 2002. The Association claimed 66,000 members.
The Association's stated mission, in summary, was to: Support the U.S. Navy; provide assistance to war veterans, members of the U.S. Armed Forces, and their families; and "the support of legislative action to provide to our service personnel, veterans, and their dependents, widows and orphans, the remuneration and benefits they truly deserve."
According to the Association's website, there are 41 state Chapters, along with Chapters in Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico and Divisions in Panama and the Philippines. However, the New Mexico Attorney General claims that the addresses given for the New Mexico chapter are for vacant lots.
The USNVA website lists the MacMurray, Petersen & Shuster LLP law firm in New Albany, Ohio as its General Counsel; Legislative Associates, Inc. of Stillwater, Minnesota as its Legislative and Public Policy Counsel, and Rubin & Associates, P.A. of St. Petersburg, Florida as its Special Counsel. It also hired additional lobbyists to gain the right to solicit in Virginia.
Investigative reporting
After a six-month investigation, the St. Petersburg TimesSt. Petersburg Times
The St. Petersburg Times is a United States newspaper. It is one of two major publications serving the Tampa Bay Area, the other being The Tampa Tribune, which the Times tops in both circulation and readership. Based in St...
published a special about the USNVA in March, 2010. The report makes a number of allegations about the Association. These include that:
- Of the 85 Association officers listed on IRS filings, only one could be located: He identified himself as a Mr. Bobby Thompson, a retired Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve, although no records could be found to support the claim.
- The Association, in communications through its Ohio-based lawyer, refused to allow the reporters to speak with any other Association officer.
- The Association claimed $22.4 million in revenue in 2008, but refuses to show reporters any detailed information about how the money was spent.
- Even though the Association says its five-member executive board and 12 key officers work out of the national headquarters on M Street in Washington, the Association's headquarters address is a rented mailbox at a UPS shipping storeThe UPS StoreThe UPS Store is a subsidiary of UPS, with locations in the United States and Canada. Each store offers shipping, postal, online printing, and other business services. In the United States, each store is independently owned and operated by a licensed franchisee of Mail Boxes Etc., Inc...
. - An audit USNVA submitted to the Better Business BureauBetter Business BureauThe Better Business Bureau , founded in 1912, is a corporation consisting of several private business franchises of local BBB organizations based in the United States and Canada, which work through their parent corporation, the Council of Better Business Bureaus .The Better Business Bureau, through...
was rejected because it did not meet generally accepted accounting principlesGenerally Accepted Accounting PrinciplesGenerally Accepted Accounting Principles refer to the standard framework of guidelines for financial accounting used in any given jurisdiction; generally known as accounting standards...
and had other irregularities. The audit was allegedly signed by a CPACertified Public AccountantCertified Public Accountant is the statutory title of qualified accountants in the United States who have passed the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination and have met additional state education and experience requirements for certification as a CPA...
located at the World Trade Center in New Orleans. Neither the building managers, state of Louisiana, or the Society of Louisiana CPAs had any record of the listed accountant. - The Association uses telemarketersTelemarketingTelemarketing is a method of direct marketing in which a salesperson solicits prospective customers to buy products or services, either over the phone or through a subsequent face to face or Web conferencing appointment scheduled during the call.Telemarketing can also include recorded sales pitches...
as a fundraisingFundraisingFundraising or fund raising is the process of soliciting and gathering voluntary contributions as money or other resources, by requesting donations from individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies...
tool. Some of the Association's contracts stipulated that for every pledge, the telemarketing company keeps 60 percent, well above the preferred norm of 12 to 13 percent.
Times reporters spoke with Mr. Thompson at his residence once. On a later visit in December, 2009, his leased residence was found vacant; according to the landlord, no forwarding address was provided.
In response, the USNVA's attorney has denied all of the Times
The American Institute of Philanthropy
American Institute of Philanthropy
The American Institute of Philanthropy is a 501 nonprofit organization, created in the United States by Daniel Borochoff in 1992, to provide information about charities' financial efficiency, accountability, governance, and fundraising. Its official website is known as...
has testified before Congress about inefficiency and wrongdoing at veterans charities. AIP features USNVA in a cover article for the December 2010 publication of its Charity Rating Guide & Watchdog Report: Phantom Charity Takes Flight, Leaves Veterans Stranded. According to the article, it is "unlikely be recovered and used to help deserving veterans.”
Virginia contributions and exemption
On Feb. 23, 2009, the Virginia Division of Consumer Protection barred USNVA from soliciting for donations because it had failed to register as a charity and to make the necessary financial disclosures. Samuel F. WrightSamuel F. Wright
Samuel F. Wright is a Washington DC-based attorney active in veterans issues. Wright lives in Arlington, Virginia.-Military career:While a law student, Wright was commissioned on November 1973, as an Ensign in the Naval Reserve, via the Navy’s Judge Advocate General’s Corps Student Program...
, a Washington-based lawyer, was retained to get the USNVA the right to solicit in Virginia, and he worked with a man who claimed to be Bobby Thompson, the Chief Financial Officer of USNVA. In March 2010, the St. Petersburg Times published a series indicating that the USNVA was a one-man operation fradulently soliciting money as a veterans' charity. When asked by the St. Petersburg Times whether Wright had ever spoken with anyone at the USNVA other than Thompson, Wright refused to answer citing attorney-client privilege. In May 2009, Wright met with then-Attorney General Bill Mims
Bill Mims
William Cleveland "Bill" Mims is a former Attorney General of Virginia and a Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia. A Republican, he served in the Virginia House of Delegates 1992–98 and the Senate of Virginia 1998–2006...
to get the bar reversed, but on August 18, 2009, the USNVA received a letter stating that the Attorney General concurred with the bar.
Following that letter, Thompson, who was a Florida resident, began to donate to Virginia politicians. In 2009, Mr. Thompson made $78,375 in political contributions
Campaign finance
Campaign finance refers to all funds that are raised and spent in order to promote candidates, parties or policies in some sort of electoral contest. In modern democracies such funds are not necessarily devoted to election campaigns. Issue campaigns in referendums, party activities and party...
. $67,500 was directed to Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
politicians, with the largest share being $55,500 in contributions to the successful campaign of Virginia Attorney General
Attorney General of Virginia
The Attorney General of Virginia is an executive office in the Government of Virginia. Attorneys General are elected for a four-year term in the year following a presidential election . There are no term limits restricting the number of terms someone can serve as Attorney General...
Ken Cuccinelli
Ken Cuccinelli
Kenneth Thomas 'Ken' Cuccinelli II is a U.S. politician and the Attorney General of Virginia. From 2002 until January 16, 2010 he was a Republican member of the Senate of Virginia, representing the 37th district in Fairfax County...
(R
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
). Thompson was Cuccinelli's second-largest campaign donor. Out of the $67,500 Virginia contributions, Thompson made only one $1,000 donation to a Democratic candidate.
When questions were initially raised about USNVA, all other Virginia politicians gave the contributions from Thompson to other veterans' organizations, but Cuccinelli initially did not, despite calls from Virginia Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
. Cuccinelli's spokesman said "if Mr. Thompson was convicted
Conviction
In law, a conviction is the verdict that results when a court of law finds a defendant guilty of a crime.The opposite of a conviction is an acquittal . In Scotland and in the Netherlands, there can also be a verdict of "not proven", which counts as an acquittal...
of wrongdoing relative to the misappropriation of funds, and contributions to our campaign came from money that was supposed to go to active duty military or veterans, we would donate those contributions to military support organizations here in Virginia." A month later in June, a Ciccinelli spokesman said $55,500 would be set aside in a restricted account pending the outcome of the investigation into Thompson and USNVA.
Thompson also made an unsolicited $1,000 contribution to Virginia Senator
State Senator
A state senator is a member of a state's Senate, the upper house in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a legislator in Nebraska's one house State Legislature.There are typically fewer state senators than there are members of a state's lower house...
Patsy Ticer
Patsy Ticer
Patricia Smith "Patsy" Ticer is an American politician. A Democrat, she was mayor of Alexandria, Virginia from 1991 to 1996, when she began service in the Senate of Virginia. She the 30th District, made up of parts of Arlington and Fairfax Counties and the city of Alexandria. She will not be a...
(D) in 2009. Wright later contacted Ticer's office, asking for assistance to make it easier for the Association to operate in Virginia. Ticer introduced Virginia Senate Bill 563 that, among other purposes, exempted tax-exempt veterans' organizations such as the USNVA from having to register with Virginia regulators. The bill was unanimously approved by the Virginia House
Virginia House of Delegates
The Virginia House of Delegates is the lower house of the Virginia General Assembly. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbered years. The House is presided over by the Speaker of the House, who is elected from among the...
and Senate
Senate of Virginia
The Senate of Virginia is the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. The Senate is composed of 40 Senators representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts. The Senate is presided over by the Lieutenant Governor of Virginia...
. After receiving the Thompson contributions, Cuccinelli met with Wright on February 15, 2010 to discuss the legislation which had passed the State Senate. After learning about the March St. Petersburg Times reports, Ticer asked Governor
Governor of Virginia
The governor of Virginia serves as the chief executive of the Commonwealth of Virginia for a four-year term. The position is currently held by Republican Bob McDonnell, who was inaugurated on January 16, 2010, as the 71st governor of Virginia....
Bob McDonnell
Bob McDonnell
Robert Francis "Bob" McDonnell is an American politician who has been the 71st Governor of Virginia since January 2010. A former lieutenant colonel in the United States Army, McDonnell served in the Virginia House of Delegates from 1993 to 2006 and served as Attorney General of Virginia from 2006...
(R), who received a $5,000 contribution from Thompson, to veto
Veto
A veto, Latin for "I forbid", is the power of an officer of the state to unilaterally stop an official action, especially enactment of a piece of legislation...
the bill she sponsored. On April 11, 2010, Wright asked Ticer to withdraw her veto request. However, the Governor signed the bill on April 12, 2010. The new law took effect on July 1, 2010. Both Senator Ticer and Governor McDonnell have given the contributions from Thompson to other veterans groups.
Removal from VA website
U.S. SenatorUnited States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Jim Webb
Jim Webb
James Henry "Jim" Webb, Jr. is the senior United States Senator from Virginia. He is also an author and a former Secretary of the Navy. He is a member of the Democratic Party....
(D-VA) wrote a letter to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs asking for the removal of the U.S. Navy Veterans Association's listing from the VA website of veterans organizations, citing recent media reports and official investigations. The VA removed the listing by the next day, noting that listing an organization does not constitute an endorsement
Testimonial
In promotion and of advertising, a testimonial or show consists of a written or spoken statement, sometimes from a person figure, sometimes from a private citizen, extolling the virtue of some product. The term "testimonial" most commonly applies to the sales-pitches attributed to ordinary...
.
Official investigations
Officials in at least five states - New MexicoNew Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
, and Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
- are investigating the Association. The USNVA is currently banned from soliciting in at least the states of New Mexico and Hawaii. In August 2010, Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray announced that a nation-wide arrest warrant had issued for Bobby Thompson, who had stolen the identity and Social Security Number of a victim who was not connected to the USNVA. Cordray stated, “We know he bilked Ohioans out of at least $1.9 million, and we estimate that nationally he collected at least $20 million.”