Posted on 08/12/2004 6:37:27 AM PDT by Former Military Chick
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) - A California teenager left paralyzed by an accidental shooting a decade ago placed a bid in federal bankruptcy court recently to buy the flawed handgun's manufacturer so he can shut it down.
Brandon Maxfield, 17, raised $175,000, much of it through his Web site, to buy bankrupt Bryco Arms of Costa Mesa, Calif. He wants to melt down 70,000 unassembled guns and close the company for good.
Bryco filed for bankruptcy in 2003 after a jury awarded the teenager $51 million in damages in a lawsuit.
Maxfield's bid to purchase Bryco was $25,000 more than the $150,000 accepted by U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Jerry Funk from Paul Jiminez, the company's former manager.
Ned Nashban, an attorney representing Bryco's owner, said the bidding process was over. But Richard Ruggieri, Maxfield's California attorney, disagreed, saying Funk could decide to sell to Maxfield since receiving the higher bid.
Bryco founder Bruce Jennings and his Nevada-based distribution company were ordered to pay $24 million of a $51 million judgment in Maxfield's lawsuit. Maxfield has received $8.7 million - none of it from Jennings or Bryco - from others named in the suit.
Days after the verdict, Jennings moved across the country to Florida, where he purchased a $500,000 annuity and a $900,000 home and hangar in Daytona Beach. He filed for personal bankruptcy and for bankruptcy for Bryco in Florida, where state law allows debtors to keep their houses.
Maxfield, a resident of Mendocino County north of San Francisco, was shot in 1994 by a baby sitter who was trying to unload a .380-caliber Bryco handgun. The shooting left him a quadriplegic. Because of the gun's design, its safety mechanism had to be released to unload the round in the semiautomatic's chamber.
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If this story is to be believed, this might be the first time I agree with suing the gun folks. It sounds like they did not act responsibility and indeed hid the fact of the safety.
While I am a staunch advocate of the Right to Bare Arms, this young man seems to have a valid case and his moxy should be applauded.
Dave and I discussed this, and if the facts as presented are true, it sounds like a defective gun.
This is of course my point of view. If there is more on this subject I would love to know more. The link below takes you to his site.
Frankly I would be interested in a discussion of this article if anyone is interested. Companies like this give those who are honest a bad name and a platform to scare.
Well, except maybe Jennings.
I prefer long sleeves myself but, to each his own. :=)
1. Always treat a gun like it is loaded
2. Always point a gun in a safe direction
3. Never point a gun at a person
Yep - Sounds like the gun's fault...
I think that means open carry
You can't get a round out of the chamber of a 1911, which is one of the most popular handguns of all time, without taking the safety off.
No firearm can make an operator follow the two most basic rules of firearm safety:
Always point the muzzle in a safe direection.
Always keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot.
P.S. Some people shouldn't "bare" their arms in public.
WTF??? Can anyone identify for me any semiauto pistol which can be cleared while the "safety" is engaged? Jennings may have been crap pistols, but the baby sitter was clearly violating Rule 2, and probably Rule 3 as well.
That Bryco, Jennings, etc has survived for so long sends a message, that poor people also have a right to bear arms.
Would I own one? Never, they're junk, but junk lawsuits helps to drive up the price of better guns.
I heard the other day that the Durham County Sheriffs office is pressuring local gun stores to not sell the High Standard handguns, too much gun for too little money. If High Standard .45s are showing up in the hands of gangbangers, whose fault is that? Who is prosecuting the straw buyers?
When will minorities and the poor wake up and realize that the Dems are slowly stripping them of their rights?
That welfare cheese could KILL someone.
Laz's Gun Safety Rules:
1. Don't sweat whether you unloaded your gun earlier. It's probably unloaded. So don't be such a worrywart!
2. It's fun to scare your friends by pointing your unloaded firearm at them. Watch their eyes get big!
3. Guns look a lot like toy guns. Toys are fun. Screw around a little! Life is short, have a little horseplay with your guns! Play cowboys and indians!
4. There is nothing a gun can harm that you can't fix up just as good as new later.
I have owned several Jennings pistols. They are reliable and unusually accurate. They are made of pot metal but otherwise a decent inexpensive gun.
Sure, four of them that I own: Beretta 92, Heckler & Koch P7M8, Walther PPK/s, and Glock 29 handguns can all be cleared without disengaging the mechanical safety.
I've heard the opposite from others.
NEVER let the muzzle cover anything you dont intend to destroy.....
Glock.
At one time I owned over 200 mostly high end handguns, although I was forced to sell quite a few while in grad school.
The Jennings has a good rep among knowledgeable shooters as does the raven, another cheapie made by the same family.
If you own a Beretta I'll defer to your knowledge, as I do not. I had thought the safety locked the slide.
On the M1911 (and all its cousins), Browning Hi-Power, Ruger MkI/II the safetly also locks the slide.
No bias in this article is there? (/sarcasm)
On a Baretta/Taurus 92, you can pop the mag with the safety engaged. Ain't no way in hell to clear the chamber without first disengaging the safety. It's a slide stop that flips up.
What are you talking about? The safety on my 92 has nothing to do with the slide motion. I can open the chamber whether or not the safety is engaged.
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