Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita is suing the global chapter of Black Lives Matter for what he says is noncompliance with his office’s request for financial documents and tax information.
In a Thursday news release, Rokita’s office announced the lawsuit is part of an investigation launched in February into how the organization was using donations from Hoosiers.
The office claims the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation published a report in 2020 that said it had raised more than $90 million, with more than $21 million of that going to 30 local chapters, including one in South Bend. But Rokita’s office said an IRS filing by the organization for the first half of 2020 listed the organization had reported zero in revenue, expenses, and assets.
The attorney general’s office in February had requested information and documents from the organization to “ensure transparency to donors and guarantee funds donated by Indiana residents are used for their intended purpose and not for the personal benefit of BLM directors,” according to the release. Black Lives Matter never responded to that request, so Rokita filed the lawsuit with the intent to force the organization to comply.
“Protecting Indiana consumers from this house of cards is critical,” Rokita said in a written statement. …
