Barry Levine

Barry Levine at the 2010 Detroit AG hotel

Barry Levine was a member of American Mensa who was expelled from American Mensa in 2008 following a national hearing for the offense of committing "calumny" against Dave Remine in the course of criticizing an earlier hearing decision against Levine resulting in sanctions against his participation in his local group in Atlanta, Georgia. This, in turn, stemmed from a conflict within that group around 2001 in which the organizers of rival lunch events clashed over the appropriateness of engaging in heated political arguments during such events. A pair of hearings were held originally, one filed by Levine against other local members, and the other against Levine. Levine's expulsion was confirmed by the American Mensa Committee at the 2008 Annual Gathering of American Mensa. Levine subsequently circulated a document accusing many members of Mensa of corruption and defamation and indicating his intention to file suit. In 2010, he applied for direct international member status with the International Board of Directors, which could have discretionarily granted it if they believed the process by which he was expelled was not conducted fairly, but they elected to take no action on this.

Since his expulsion, Levine has attempted to register for Annual Gatherings as a guest of a member, but has been refused on the basis of a rule (newly passed after his expulsion, and after an unsuccessful attempt to confiscate his AG badge right after his expulsion was confirmed) against expelled members attending any Mensa event (except for events held in private homes when the owner of the home consents to the person being allowed). He has, however, stayed at AG hotels during the gatherings and hung out in the lobby and grounds to meet Mensans. In 2011, he stood outside the hotel in Portland wearing a bright orange shirt saying I was expelled from Mensa for "committing calumny against Dave Remine."

While Levine indicated an intention of filing suit against Mensa soon after his expulsion, no indication of any such filing was forthcoming at the time. In late 2011, there was a statement from the American Mensa Committee that "American Mensa has been sued by a former member for reinstatement of membership. American Mensa has answered the complaint and filed a motion to dismiss." While there are several other expelled members other than Levine, speculation was rampant in forums such as M-Pol that this was in fact his suit. Finally, a filing dated October 28, 2011 surfaced, indicating that Levine had in fact filed suit in a Georgia county court against American Mensa and some individuals including Remine, seeking reinstatement of his Mensa membership. The response from Mensa included a motion to dismiss on several charges, including a Georgia law providing a one-year statute of limitations for claims resulting from expulsion from an organization; Levine waited several years after his expulsion before filing suit. Ultimately the case was dismissed by the judge, but this is under appeal.

External links

• Demand letter preceding lawsuit (In M-Pol list archives; requires list membership)
• Complaint from lawsuit (In M-Pol list archives; requires list membership)
• Defendants' answer and motion (In M-Pol list archives; requires list membership)
• Plaintiff's response to motion (In M-Pol list archives; requires list membership)
• Defendants' reply brief (In M-Pol list archives; requires list membership)
• Dismissal (In M-Pol list archives; requires list membership)
• Appeal (In M-Grapevine list archives; requires list membership)