In Case You Missed It: EDITORIAL CARTOON THE GRIZZLE BEAR

Transcription

1 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: JOHN PHINIZY JUNE 24, 2013 In Case You Missed It: EDITORIAL CARTOON THE GRIZZLE BEAR ROSWELL, NM In light of recent attempts by New Mexico Military Institute's Superintendent Jerry Grizzle to illegally seize $5.2 million in assets from the separate and independent NMMI Alumni Association, the Roswell Daily Record on Sunday portrayed Grizzle as a greedy "grizzly" bear that has an "insatiable" appetite for the association's money and other assets. A copy of the published cartoon is attached and can also be viewed here: Record-on-Sunday-June-23

2 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: JOHN PHINIZY JUNE 22, 2013 NMMI Alumni Association Says Superintendent Grizzle Is Continuing Campaign of Lies Roswell Daily Record egregiously fails to check facts or require documentation before printing false claims ROSWELL, NM In what has become a disturbing pattern of deceit, current Superintendent Jerry Grizzle is continuing his "campaign of lies" against the 50-plus year old independent NMMI Alumni Association in his attempt to seize the Association s $5.2 million in assets. In a Friday news article written and published by the Roswell Daily Record, Troubled NMMI Alumni Break Rank Grizzle s representatives gave false information about the Association to a reporter and then the newspaper egregiously failed to fact-check those false claims before printing the article. "Superintendent Grizzle is continuing his campaign of lies against the Alumni Association and the Roswell Daily Record has failed to protect itself against those false claims, said John Phinizy, NMMI Alumni Association President. We are requesting that the newspaper run the proper corrections to set the record straight. The false claims and requested corrections are: False Claim No. 1: The Roswell Daily Record wrongly claims that the Alumni Association has spent "$300,000 in alumni contributions to pay for a newly rented office, a lawyer, a new executive director and a public relations firm." Fact: The Association has spent a total of approximately $35, on all of its expenses since it was locked out of its offices on May 6, This is substantially less than the Roswell Daily Record s claim of $300,000. This is roughly the same amount that would have been spent had the Association remained operational in its on-post office. How can a person not connected to the Alumni Association and who clearly knows nothing about its finances tell a newspaper how much money he thinks it is spending, and then get it printed without question? asked Phinizy.

3 False Claim No. 2: The Roswell Daily Record wrongly claims that the Alumni Association is refusing to hold a general membership vote to determine the fate of the organization, stating Phinizy has denied the request twice. The most recent denial came Thursday. Fact: The Alumni Association has said all along that it intends to take the issue of dissolution to a vote of its members. Phinizy never denied taking the issue to a vote to the Roswell Daily Record. Alumni Association President John Phinizy has repeatedly supported a general membership vote, which has been well-documented in several alumni communications as well as two press releases that were sent to the Roswell Daily Record one on May 19, 2013 and one on June 13, According to Phinizy, the Association cannot survey its members or call for a vote until Superintendent Grizzle reinstates the Association s access to its database of alumni contact information. On May 6, the Grizzle administration locked the doors on the alumni office and changed the passcodes needed for access to the alumni databases. In addition, the Association s website, critically important for communication with members, was redirected by staff members who were instructed to make the change by Grizzle s administration. False Claim No. 3: The Roswell Daily Record failed to fact check, and then printed, inconsistent statements made about Grizzle s withholding of necessary financial information. NMMI Spokesman Carl Hansen said NMMI has not prevented (Alumni) access to the necessary information. We have nothing that would prevent them from doing their financials, Hansen said. The Association was offered an agreement by NMMI Board of Regents to remain on campus and sort through its remaining business, but the group could not sign the deal. Fact: All of the Association s important alumni information is housed in databases that require passcodes for access and those passcodes were changed at Grizzle s direction in early May. Those passcodes and other important information are being withheld at Grizzle s direction. According to the Roswell Daily Record s reporting, time for a transition was first offered to the Association but then refused because the Association could not legally dissolve itself without a vote by the membership the demand which Grizzle had placed on the table. Hansen claims that the Institute is not preventing the Association from accessing its data while at the same time the Roswell Daily Record reports that the time to transition had been offered and then refused. Time and access were clearly needed, but not given. The Roswell Daily Record failed to report this inconsistency. Superintendent Grizzle would like the Association to produce a current financial statement, and he would like to have our membership vote to dissolve itself so that he can have control of our assets, but he is refusing to hand over the information we need to even attempt to complete our financials, much less contact our membership to conduct a vote, said Phinizy. It s time that the Roswell Daily Record start checking its facts before it publishes stories, said Phinizy. We are spending a lot of resources trying to correct the record because of it. The New Mexico Military Institute Alumni Association is an independent non-profit organization that has supported its members and the Institute while raising money and operating separately from the Institute and the Board of Regents for more than 50 years. The long-

4 standing relationship that existed between the Institute and the Association was recently breached by actions taken by current Superintendent Jerry Grizzle. ###

5 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: JOHN PHINIZY JUNE 13, 2013 NMMI Alumni Association: Funds Are Safe, Will Defend Against Grizzle Lawsuit and Baseless Allegations (Roswell, NM) In an distributed Tuesday, NMMI s Alumni Association informed its members that the Institute s current Superintendent, Jerry Grizzle, filed a lawsuit this week to seize control of the independent, non-profit Association s $5.2 million in assets. The Association announced its intention to defend against the lawsuit and the baseless allegations contained within it, while reiterating that its funds are safe and secure. In response to the lawsuit, NMMI Alumni Association President John Phinizy released the following statement today: Mr. Grizzle s intentions are now very clear and very public, said Phinizy. We believed all along that Mr. Grizzle s damaging, baseless claims toward the Association and his unwillingness to work with us to resolve very minor issues were rooted in a strong desire to have complete control over the $5.2 million in assets. This is exactly why it has been prudent for the Alumni Association to remain separate from the Institution s administrations for so many years. The Board of Directors of the NMMI Alumni Association is disappointed to have to defend against this expensive and baseless lawsuit. However, we are not surprised by Mr. Grizzle s extreme action in this matter. The allegations contained within the lawsuit are false, we will defend against them, and we will make sure that the Alumni and the Association membership have a fair say on what becomes of the Association in the future. The Association s funds, as always, remain safe and secure under proper management and oversight. ### Reporter s Note: The sent to alumni yesterday is below. Also, regarding claims that the NMMI Alumni Association assets are at risk, members and alumni should be aware that all funds are invested with and managed by Wells Fargo, are under the audit oversight of the highly reputable accounting firm Moss Adams, and are by law under the protection and oversight of a legally elected Board of Directors and President John Phinizy. Review applicable documents here: Dear NNMI Alumni: You may have received an ed letter yesterday from the NMMI Board of Regents announcing that the Institute has filed a lawsuit against your Alumni Association. In this lawsuit,

6 the administration is continuing to try to seize the $5.2 million of Association assets and is asking the court to place those assets under the control of Superintendent Grizzle. Your Association continues to deny the allegations set forth by NMMI. The funds are being properly managed and protected and are not at risk. We will vigorously defend the Association against the lawsuit. The relationship between the Association and the Institute has a strong, 50-plus year history that was in place long before Mr. Grizzle arrived at NMMI and will hopefully remain in place throughout the tenure of many administrations to come. We are working toward solutions that can withstand individual personalities and agendas. Ultimately, it is up to you, the members of the NMMI Alumni Association, to decide if you want your organization to remain an independent entity, as it has been for over 50 years, or if you want your Association to fall under the control of the Superintendent, whomever that might be. A membership survey is forthcoming that will give all our members an opportunity to share their opinion as to what you want the Association to become. Information will follow. All the best, NMMI Alumni Association Board of Directors Note: Regarding claims that the NMMI Alumni Association assets are at risk, members and alumni should be aware that all funds are invested with and managed by Wells Fargo, are under the audit oversight of the highly reputable accounting firm Moss Adams, and are by law under the protection and oversight of a legally elected Board of Directors and President John Phinizy. More about John Phinizy John Phinizy s commitment to service and core values has been demonstrated throughout his lengthy career in the Army and in the courtroom. John, 67 JC was born and raised in Roswell and upon graduation from the Institute, became a Life Member of the Alumni Association. He continued his education at Texas Tech obtaining a degree in psychology. He received his army commission and spent the next eight years in Military Intelligence. He mustered out as a captain in 1976 and started law school at Baylor University. In 1990, he was appointed as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Western District of Texas where he prosecuted such high profile cases as the Branch Davidians and the Baylor Basketball Coaches. John was instrumental in the prosecution of former Texas Attorney General Dan Morales. Because of his experience in the Intelligence Community, he was assigned to the Austin FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force in 2003 where he worked until April As a federal prosecutor, he has earned numerous awards and commendations, including the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association Prosecutorial Award, the Texas Department of Safety Director s Award, and the Department of Justice Director s Award. In April of 2007 Phinizy retired from the Department of Justice and accepted a contract position in the Department of Homeland Security as a Senior Legal Instructor at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Artesia, NM. That contract was completed in February of After two months of retirement, Phinizy accepted a position as a Senior Trial Attorney with the Fifth

7 Judicial District Attorney s Office in Roswell. He is licensed to practice law in both New Mexico and Texas.