Rob Boudrie
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Posts posted by Rob Boudrie
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2 hours ago, IVC said:
There are some fixes that should be done at the top level, but it's mostly political stuff, smoother reactions, clearer communications, etc.
There has been a decision by the USPSA leadership to carefully curate what members hear. There has been nothing in Front Sight or online communications about the CO issue; member suspensions; termination of relations with an advertiser / sponsor; the fact that USPSA settled a suit by an employee without admitting wrongdoing; or massive negative cash flow. Instead we get puff pieces of drivel and a letter to the editor complaining about members being impolite to USPSA staff - not decisive reaction to a staff member calling USPSA members dickheads.
I understand that a member was prohibited from live streaming the member's meeting at the nationals, and USPSA declared that recording the meeting was prohibited.
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6 hours ago, Joe4d said:
dont need any of that,,, dont recall the legal term, but its a suit filed against a gov official at the next higher court when a gov official wont do their job.
Writ of Mandamus
QuoteWe agree on that, it was all a direct result of the Cameo decision.
I somewhat disagree.
When there is a software bug in a product, the root cause is always deciding to build the product. I believe the root cause was not the goof in venue selection, but the board, president's, DNROI, and Director of Media and Event response when it was brought to their attention. One legally and ethically correct decision could have very significantly limited damage:
(a) Announce that rule 3.3.1 would be applied as writtenor
(b) Immediately reschedule to another venue that did not prevent the complication
Had either of these steps been taken there would have been a big "oops", the "It was like that when I got here" defense could have been offered (since the contract was apparently signed by the former president and finance manager), and there would have been no controversy, member suspensions, or litigation. Effective leadership is about doing the right thing at the right time. We would never have learned USPSA settled a sexual harassment suit with a former employee, nor would we have learned the author of the gun reviews in Front Sight was running a private business selling review guns he almost certainly got at a discount from the manufactuter.
Whether not USPSA leadership acted in the best interests of the members and organization is left as an exercise to the interested reader.QuoteCourts typically step in when non profits fail to give their members "due process" when disciplining them. One of the common steps of that due process is an official list of charges against them.
I am not fully cognizant as to the legal import, but the "String Rutowski up" email comment, "You may not have a representative or attorney present at your suspension hearing", and "we will not respond to any further communication" is unlikely to impress a court.
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12 hours ago, IVC said:
What specifically is unreasonable and what specific public policy does this violate?
An argument can be made that taking action against a member for truthfully pointing out that the organization is suborning violation of law, and not proactively warning members of such, is against public policy.
About the $25k - different courts handle "small dollar" cases, and the court in which a case is heard depends on the dollar mount requested. This is probably why the amount is simply listed as "In excess of $25k", and it prevents bouncing it down to a lower court.
As to the amount of pain worth $25K - subjective and hard to judge. But note that the pleading also requests punitive damages.
The only statement USPSA can reasonably make is either "we cannot comment on pending litigation" or "We deny the claims and cannot comment on ongoing litigation". The real question is "Will USPSA even mention the existence of the suit in any official communication to the members? -
9 minutes ago, IVC said:
No, there is no mention of any conduct or merits of the suspension, only the allegation that he couldn't have been
I read it to refer to the mention of suspension for revealing the "ignore the law" position of the board as being contrary to public policy. But what you or I think is irrelevant - only the court gets a vote, and I have seen some court decisions that require considerable analytical strain (with due credit to Judge Woodlock of the 1st Circuit for the expression)
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2 hours ago, IVC said:
There isn't a single line claiming what he did was right (or wrong), and there isn't a single line about dealing with the CO law. Anyone ever suspended by the USPSA for whatever reason could bring exactly the same lawsuit.
There is, but you have to read the claims carefully and understand the terms:
"Public Policy" is a legal term with a specific meaning. In this case, the plaintiff alleges that penalizing someone for disclosing wrongdoing on the part of an organization is contrary to "Public Policy" and therefore actionable. The plaintiff is arguing that taking action against him for truthfully disclosing the organization advocating breaking of the law is "against public policy" and therefore invalid. Decisions, contractual terms and policies enacted by organizations that are against public policy can be voided by the court.
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19 minutes ago, GJM said:
By now, USPSA's counsel will have advised all directors and employees to not destroy and maintain all email, text messages, other documents or social media posts relevant to Cameo and the terminations. This is going to be expensive and uncomfortable, and all should consider settling this.
The spoliation letter from Rutowski was sent out months ago (and is one of the attachments in the filing).
QuoteIf I were in charge, I would be unbanning a number of people, in exchange for an agreement to work in the best interest of USPSA.
The problem with that is that the board thinks it is acting in the best interests of USPSA.
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53 minutes ago, ampleworks said:
3.3.1 would've been difficult to prove depending on the firearm except for those that didn't exist in 2013 (like most of the popular CO guns as well as the Sig PCC). The real problem with 3.3.1 are the implications for those who are in a cleared job field despite it only being a misdemeanor, it's still a charge that you'll be reporting to your FSO or listing on your next SF86.
Since the grandfathering requires "personal possession" prior to the ban and the CO law went into effect July 1, 2013, good luck to the 21 year old shooter who claims he stockpiled mags when he was 11. It would be easy to prove that not every competitor (i.e., not "all competitors") could legally possess high cap mags at the match, thus making 3.3.1 applicable.
Another example - a crime involving guns or ammo for which any jail time can possibly be imposed (even small misdemeanors nobody ever gets time for typically have a maximum time on the books) is a lifetime ban on possession of guns, ammo or high cap mags in the Democratik People's Republik of Massachusetts.
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5 hours ago, BritinUSA said:
Thanks for the clarification, Rob. I've never understood why 3.3.1 was not used more frequently, it could certainly have been used for Cameo
The big reason is DNROI declared it a stupid rule that should be removed from the rulebook.
The USPSA president ruled that it did not apply because "some" competitors could bring high caps.
USPSA long ago concluded that if people could legally buy high mags on the secondary market, it did not trigger 3.3.1.
The CO exemption only applies to magazines personally owned and possessed before the CO ban was passed. The USPSA logic quickly because "how would they ever prove it" rather than "is it or is it not illegal according to the law?".
QuoteWhile he is seeking damages over $25,000
The amount has to reach a certain threshold, otherwise the case is heard by a lower level court. This is why "In excess of $25,000" is used rather than a specific amount.
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44 minutes ago, GJM said:
You would expect USPSA to want to settle to avoid legal costs and distraction for the organization. The plaintiff will have to decide what they need to settle.
If the defense is provided by general or D&O insurance, it is the insurance company that makes the decision to accept a settlement offer or go to trial. I know that applies to $$, but don't know if the insurer can compel USPSA to admit wrongdoing to settle without a confidentiality clause.
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1 hour ago, BritinUSA said:
I'm willing to bet they will settle out of court
There is one small problem with that. Out of court settlements generally have two requirements imposed by the paying party:
- - Terms are confidential
- - No admission of wrongdoing on the part of the paying party
I do not expect Joe Rutowski to acquiesce to either of these terms.
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The "short form" is that Joe Rutowski was suspended for online speech that USPSA determined "cross the line" and would not be tolerated by the board, and for making an inquiry to the CO AG. (Yup, contacting LE about a legal issue was partial grounds for suspension).
"This is not going to play well in court as it clearly indicates disreputable behavior by the organizarion."Funny thing - the basis of the suspension was "bringing USPSA into disrepute". Apparently telling the truth is not a defense to this charge.
USPSA tried to dodge the CO mag ban issue, offered totally bogus legal opinions, and determined that rule 3.3.1 (written by myself over a decade over to cover this situation) did not apply because "some" competitors were grandfathered. (read 3.3.1 and draw your own conclusion).
SVI/Infinity told USPSA it would withdraw its sponsorship of the CO match as long as USPSA continued to suborn violations of gun law since, as a federally licensed manufacturer, Infinity refuses to engage in or associate with illegal activity. Director of Media and Events responded with "OK, Infinity is banned from all future advertising and will never be allowed to sponsor a USPSA run match". The board chose to stand by Jake rather than intervene in this.
The attention brought by the issue led to the disclosure that USPSA has been sued for sexual harassment by office manager Kim Williams and a settlement paid (presumably by USPSA's insurance carrier).
There is more .... much more .... none of it good. -
Quote
Does Inijiheads charge at the time an order is placed or when they ship?
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Is ibijiheads in business and shipping bullets?
They do not respond to queries submitted via their on-line form, and calls to their voicemail go to a voicemail system that states the mailbox is full and unable to take additional messages.
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An incredibly talented individual and great USPSA president who spelled his name "Voigt" (no "H")
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I think I had a dialysis cath in my belly at the nationals since I started out on Peritoneal Dialysis.
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Colonoscopy saved my father's life.
I've had a few...no problems. Was lights out both times.
I was planning on scheduling one soon, but have to delay because the kidney that I had on back order arrived and is in its new home.
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Please consider signing up to be an organ donor, and communicating that wish to your family members.
After 6+ years on dialysis, I got "the call" Friday afternoon. They started cutting at Midnight on 9/8, and by 5:30AM I had a new kidney from a 24 year old woman whose family saw fit to allow donation. For someone of my age (60) to get an organ that young is called hitting the jackpot. Two doctors advised me to buy a lottery ticket on the way in for surgery.
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If you like dogs, buy the SVI. It is a definitely a dog friendly company.
- I was in Sandy Strayer's pickup when his wife was driving and he started yelling at her to pull over. He saw a dog walking down a road in the middle of nowhere TX and thought it looked hungry, so he gave the dog half of the sandwich he was eating.
- Brandon Strayer heard about a baby bulldog (English, not pit) that was about to be put down because it was born with a cleft lip and palette, but he could get for "free". He adopted the dog and paid over $1000 for the surgery to save its life - and it is now happily hanging around the factory.
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The "calendar year" approach was used to keep things simple and easy to explain - no worry about scores "rolling off" as each new run was done. Zack did some more examination, and changed it to "current plus two previous calendar years". This was not a technical issue (it would be trivial to use a rolling window).
We will be adding a "top 20 in division" as well as statistics on where you rank overall (within division) and in class (for a division). This will be a ranking but, unlike the old ranking system, will not be a "synthetic match" calculated using all 8 SC-### stages.
Zack is the point person for policy issues, so please contact him with any suggestions for refinement of the system.
And yes, we will working with the Practiscore developers to add an "auto import" of classifications into that program.
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Rick (USPSA HQ based webmaster) and I were on-line last night and watching as waitlist signups rolled in. They also appear to be on the classification page. If you contact rick@uspsa.org he can help you. You can try rob@boudrie.com, but I am only going to be online until about noon today - if I hear from you by then, I can check for you as long as you include your USPSA member number.
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As of 10:50
62 Limited
90 Open/Limited 10
57 Production
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Have you looked into home hemo? If you can get your doc to get you home hemo, nocturnal, and get authorization for every other day rather than 3x/week you will lower your statistical mortality significantly over 3x/week in-center. Ask your doc what the studies say (funny, they all know this but never seem to volunteer the info). And then, there is always the option of short daily which is also much better from a mortality rate than 3x/in center.
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My shooting has sucked for years, but I still have fun. I started PD last July 2, but it proved inadequate in January and I had to transition to HD. I feel pretty fortunate as I am able to deal with the symptoms and don't experience the extreme fatigue that has been reported by many, plus I was able to get mentally prepared as I had 17 years notice. The surprise nature of the transition necessitated a femoral line followed by a vas cath with the fistula coming later (after some other issues are resolved and I am ready to be surged - already had the mapping done), so I am absolutely precluded from rifle shooting for a few months minimum but can still handgun. Since I am stuck in-center until I transition to nocturnal in-center and then home hemo, most Area 7 match registrations get processed from "the chair". Gets loads of funny looks from the staff when they have a room full of patients zoning out, and I set up a board I bring to make a desk, laptop, letter opener, file box, stapler and get to work.
On a side note - if you are a candidate for PD, consider giving it a go. I'd gladly give all the guns in my safe to be able to give up HD and move back to PD - and my safe is dang full. At the last board meeting, I was connected to a PD drain bag in my laptop case as we carried on discussions - and others either didn't notice or were too polite to comment.
My advice is "be your own best advocate". Learn all you can about the different flavors of dialysis, and don't expect your doc or clinic to tell you everything - for example, have you been told about the tremendous increase in mortality caused by the typical US use of 3 day/week treatment instead of every other day (EOD)? That three day gap can be a killer. Any doc will confirm that if asked, but few will volunteer that they are offering you clearly sub-optimal treatment based on a cost/.benefit calculation driven by medicare guidelines (as all dialysis patients are medicare after 30 months of treatment regardless of age).
There are multiple models of home machines available, each with various choices in modality of operation. Learn about every one of them, and consider becoming a home hemo patient for both a better medical outcome and lifestyle improvements. I have to transition to fistula before doing this, however, it is in my plan and my doc has promised to make it happen.
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You never know when you will change from "prospective donor" to "prospective donee". It can happen to anyone - yes, even you. Trust me on this one. See my resignation notice on www.uspsa.org for details.
Lawsuit against USPSA
in USPSA/IPSC Shooting
Posted · Edited by Rob Boudrie
https://attorneyinfo.aoc.arkansas.gov/info/Attorney/Attorney_Search_Detail.aspx?ID=7818fb02-e23c-47d7-8a5e-636df884f0e6