PHILADELPHIA (AP) The board of directors of a group advocating stricter gun laws voted to kick out a woman who has been accused of being a spy for the National Rifle Association.
The board of CeaseFirePA voted unanimously Friday to remove fellow board member Mary Lou McFate. The group also is exploring possible legal action against her, though CeaseFirePA spokesman Joe Grace declined to discuss what those actions might entail.
''We don't want to contemplate what those legal actions would be that's what skilled counsel would do,'' Grace said.
McFate, an unpaid member of the CeaseFirePA board for seven years, is accused of portraying herself as a gun-control activist while being paid by the NRA to gather intelligence. A Chicago-based group, the Freedom States Alliance, expelled her from its board last week.
The revelation about her dual identity was contained in a deposition filed as part of a contract dispute involving a security firm. It was first reported by Mother Jones magazine.
The NRA has declined to discuss the accusation and a message left for its representatives Friday was not immediately returned. Messages left this week for McFate, 62, of Sarasota, Fla., have not been returned.
CeaseFirePA said it sought to get McFate's side of the story, but that she didn't respond to the group's correspondence.
If the allegations are true, Grace said CeaseFirePA will need to comb through seven years of records before it makes any decision about taking legal action.
On Thursday, New Jersey Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg asked the NRA respond to the accusations and to stop the snooping.
