diff --git "a/src/api/routes/channels/\043channel_id/invites.ts" "b/src/api/routes/channels/\043channel_id/invites.ts"
index ae32e80..3bb3719 100644
--- "a/src/api/routes/channels/\043channel_id/invites.ts"
+++ "b/src/api/routes/channels/\043channel_id/invites.ts"
@@ -1,17 +1,17 @@
 /*
 	Spacebar: A FOSS re-implementation and extension of the Discord.com backend.
 	Copyright (C) 2023 Spacebar and Spacebar Contributors
-	
+
 	This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
 	it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as published
 	by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
 	(at your option) any later version.
-	
+
 	This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
 	but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
 	MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
 	GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
-	
+
 	You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
 	along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 */
@@ -84,7 +84,7 @@
 		}).save();
 
 		const data = invite.toJSON();
-		data.inviter = (await User.getPublicUser(req.user_id)).toPublicUser();
+		data.inviter = await User.getPublicUser(req.user_id);
 		data.guild = await Guild.findOne({ where: { id: guild_id } });
 		data.channel = channel;
 
diff --git "a/src/api/routes/users/\043id/profile.ts" "b/src/api/routes/users/\043id/profile.ts"
index 44271ca..6d727dc 100644
--- "a/src/api/routes/users/\043id/profile.ts"
+++ "b/src/api/routes/users/\043id/profile.ts"
@@ -41,7 +41,10 @@
 
 		const { guild_id, with_mutual_guilds } = req.query;
 
-		const user = await User.getPublicUser(req.params.id, {
+		const user = await User.findOneOrFail({
+			where: {
+				id: req.params.id,
+			},
 			relations: ["connected_accounts"],
 		});
 
diff --git a/src/api/util/handlers/Message.ts b/src/api/util/handlers/Message.ts
index f037417..2569320 100644
--- a/src/api/util/handlers/Message.ts
+++ b/src/api/util/handlers/Message.ts
@@ -87,7 +87,9 @@
 	}
 
 	if (opts.author_id) {
-		message.author = await User.getPublicUser(opts.author_id);
+		message.author = await User.findOneOrFail({
+			where: { id: opts.author_id },
+		});
 		const rights = await getRights(opts.author_id);
 		rights.hasThrow("SEND_MESSAGES");
 	}
diff --git a/src/gateway/opcodes/LazyRequest.ts b/src/gateway/opcodes/LazyRequest.ts
index 45eaccf..c58642b 100644
--- a/src/gateway/opcodes/LazyRequest.ts
+++ b/src/gateway/opcodes/LazyRequest.ts
@@ -238,7 +238,7 @@
 				// eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/ban-ts-comment
 				// @ts-ignore
 				if (session?.status == "unknown") session.status = "online";
-				const user = (await User.getPublicUser(x)).toPublicUser(); // why is this needed?
+				const user = await User.getPublicUser(x);
 
 				return Send(this, {
 					op: OPCODES.Dispatch,
diff --git a/src/util/entities/User.ts b/src/util/entities/User.ts
index 0323de5..89061e7 100644
--- a/src/util/entities/User.ts
+++ b/src/util/entities/User.ts
@@ -279,14 +279,12 @@
 		return user as UserPrivate;
 	}
 
-	static async getPublicUser(user_id: string, opts?: FindOneOptions<User>) {
-		return await User.findOneOrFail({
+	static async getPublicUser(user_id: string): Promise<PublicUser> {
+		const user = await User.findOneOrFail({
 			where: { id: user_id },
-			...opts,
-			// eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/ban-ts-comment
-			//@ts-ignore
-			select: [...PublicUserProjection, ...(opts?.select || [])], // TODO: fix
+			select: PublicUserProjection,
 		});
+		return user.toPublicUser();
 	}
 
 	public static async generateDiscriminator(