Gun club votes to back Walters

A Troy gun club voted at its Tuesday meeting to support the efforts of Troy’s chief of police in his dispute concerning assets belonging to another gun club.

In a 5-1 vote, the Troy Shooting Club passed a vague motion Tuesday night made by chief of police Mitch Walters, a member, to “support Mitch in securing Troy assets on behalf of Troy.”

Walters is being investigated by the state Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation for refusing to relinquish equipment owned by the Cabinet Rifle and Pistol Club. Members say it would cost $7,000 to replace the metal targets in Walter’s possession, while Walters insists the used equipment is worth less than $1,000. 

Walters claims that the Troy-founded club is now made up of mostly Libby members, and insists that half of the club’s assets should stay with residents of Troy.

Members of the Cabinet Rifle and Pistol Club assert that membership is irrelevant because the assets legally belong to the club.

The role that the Troy Shooting Club will play in the dispute is still unclear. Club member Wayne Maffit foresees a dialogue between the groups with the county attorney present.

Though Walters has said before that he wants the Troy club to attain half of Cabinet’s assets, Maffit said he would be happy to share them.

“Many of the original members were in Troy,” he said. “It was probably more Troy money that paid for it than Libby, but I’d rather share it than argue over who owns what.”

Cabinet president Hugh Taylor said that the decision to have a dialogue with the Troy group would have to be made by club members, but he maintains that the equipment belongs to Cabinet.

“It’s our property,” he said. “That’s still our stand. If they wanted to borrow or use our equipment, that would be up to the (Cabinet) membership.”

Troy Shooting Club president Hank Lasala opposed getting his club mixed up in the conflict. He ruled Walters’ motion out of order at Tuesday’s meeting because it involved a legal matter, but board members overruled his decision in a vote.

“My point all along has been this is a matter between Mitch and the Cabinet Rifle and Pistol Club,” Lasala said, “and the Troy Shooting Club should not be involved.”

Members say that the Cabinet Rifle and Pistol Club began as it is today in the mid-1980s, though some version of it was formed decades earlier.