BALTIMORE — Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown and Secretary of State Susan C. Lee have shut down two nonprofit organizations accused of exploiting children to raise money for nonexistent youth programs, announcing permanent bans against the groups and their founder.
The organizations — Maryland Youth Club of America Inc. and Virginia Youth Club of America Inc. — recruited middle- and high-school students to sell candy door-to-door across Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C., telling donors the proceeds would fund scholarships and enrichment programs for at-risk youth, officials said. Instead, investigators found the money was diverted for personal use by adults running the operations.
The settlements follow a joint investigation by authorities in Maryland, the District of Columbia and Virginia. As part of the agreement, founder Jule Huston, a New York resident who served as president of both charities, and other officers and directors are permanently barred from operating or soliciting for a nonprofit in Maryland. Huston is also prohibited from forming or running charities in Virginia and Washington, D.C.
“These adults exploited children twice — first by sending them door-to-door as salespeople, then by misusing the money donors thought would help at-risk youth,” Brown said in a statement.
According to investigators, the two charities collected more than $857,000 in gross sales while promising participants part-time jobs, weekly pay, trips, scholarships and prizes. Officials said the organizations could not show that children were consistently paid or received the benefits they were promised.
Authorities also alleged that Huston diverted charitable funds for personal use. Between 2022 and 2023, more than $23,000 was transferred from Maryland Youth Club accounts to Huston’s CashApp account, to his mother, to a New York corporation he created and to an officer of the Virginia organization, officials said. Additional spending occurred in New York at businesses including gas stations, Walmart, AutoZone and Petco, despite the organizations operating in the Mid-Atlantic region. Large portions of the funds remain unaccounted for, investigators said.
The investigation further found that Huston intentionally destroyed nonprofit financial records for multiple years, eliminating documentation from 2020 through 2023, according to the Attorney General’s Office.
Secretary of State Susan C. Lee said the state would not tolerate deceptive charitable practices.
“We are committed to keeping bad actors out of the nonprofit world and upholding Maryland’s charity laws,” Lee said.
Under the settlement, both organizations will be permanently dissolved. Huston and other officers are banned from soliciting charitable contributions or operating nonprofits in Maryland, including serving as consultants or advisers involved in fundraising. Huston is also barred from handling charitable funds in any capacity.
The organizations and Huston must also pay $5,000, which will be redirected to legitimate nonprofits serving at-risk youth.
Officials said the case mirrors earlier enforcement action against another group, DMV Futures Inc., which was permanently banned from soliciting in Maryland after losing an appeal in October 2025.
State and regional authorities said the shutdowns are part of a broader effort to protect donors and children from fraudulent fundraising schemes that misuse charitable status for personal gain.
The settlement agreement is available here.
