A lawsuit over church vandalism came to a unique end on Monday when D.C. Superior Court Judge Tanya M. Jones Bosier gave Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church control over the Proud Boys' naming rights.
Moving forward, the organization must seek permission from the church before signing merchandise deals with apparel companies or selling items they’ve produced in-house with the Proud Boys name or logo, according to The New York Times.
Proud Boys lawsuits
Monday’s ruling came after the Proud Boys failed to resolve a multimillion-dollar judgment against them in a civil case brought by Metropolitan AME Church. They had been ordered to pay around $2.8 million.
“The case stemmed from the night (Dec. 12, 2020) that Proud Boys tore down and destroyed the church’s Black Lives Matter sign," The Washington Post reported.
The vandalism at the church was part of a violent protest over President Donald Trump’s loss in November 2020 to former President Joe Biden.
Members of the Proud Boys, who define themselves by their opposition to progressive political movements and their support for traditional masculinity, were later involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Several of the group’s leaders went to prison due to their actions on that day.
In a statement about the new ruling, Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, who has led the Proud Boys in the past but now has an unclear relationship with the group, noted that he “couldn’t adequately respond” to the church’s civil lawsuit because he was in prison when it worked its way through the legal system, per The Washington Post.
“He said that the person who set up the (Proud Boys) LLC has been kicked out of the group and that the corporation has been dissolved,” the Post reported.
Tarrio also said that Metropolitan AME Church should lose its nonprofit status and that the Washington judge should be impeached.
“Their actions are a betrayal of justice,” he said, per The New York Times.
Church responds to Proud Boys ruling
In an interview with The Washington Post, the church’s pastor celebrated the judge’s decision, noting that his congregation won’t give up until they’re “made whole.”
“It is justice. It is karmic,” said the Rev. William H. Lamar IV.
Kaitlin Banner, the attorney who represented the church, said that it’s “fitting” for the Proud Boys to be forced to help fund “the good works of the historic Black church,“ The Washington Post reported.
Future of the Proud Boys
As Tarrio’s comments implied, it’s not clear how much money Metropolitan AME Church will get from controlling the Proud Boys' trademark.
The group is currently at a crossroads, as breakaway organizations rise up to challenge Tarrio’s leadership.
“After Jan. 6 prosecutions affected their leadership and court records showed Tarrio was once a prolific cooperator with the FBI and local law enforcement, the group struggled to regroup at the national level,” The Washington Post reported.
Tarrio was among the members of the Proud Boys who benefited from Trump’s recent pardon of Jan. 6 protesters.
Trump “included Mr. Tarrio and several of his lieutenants in his sweeping act of clemency,” per The New York Times.