Costa Mesa gun company files for bankruptcy

Paul Clinton

A local manufacturer of cheap pistols has declared bankruptcy and may

cease operations after being liable in an accidental shooting almost

a decade ago.

Costa Mesa-based Bryco Arms and B.L. Jennings, its Nevada

distributor, sought bankruptcy protection more than a month ago and

are now mulling whether to pull the plug on the company, said Ned

Nashban, Bryco’s bankruptcy lawyer.

“Theoretically, they could put together a plan and reorganize,”

said Nashban, an attorney with Florida firm Quarles & Brady. “It’s

too early to tell.”

As of Monday, the company was still producing a line of low-price

handguns at its Costa Mesa factory near John Wayne Airport. Calls to

Bryco’s Janice Jennings, who now oversees day-to-day operations, were

not returned.

On May 14, Nashban submitted 11 interrelated Chapter 11 filings on

behalf of Bryco, B.L. Jennings and founder Bruce Jennings, who filed

for personal bankruptcy, in a Florida court.

The filings came less than a month after an Oakland jury held the

company liable for the accidental shooting of Brandon Maxfield, a now

16-year-old boy who was paralyzed after a family friend accidentally

shot him in the jaw, in 1994, while he was trying to unload a

.38-caliber Bryco handgun.

The jury found Bryco 10% liable and three gun distributors,

including B.L. Jennings and Bruce Jennings himself, 35% liable. The

remaining fault was placed with the pawnshop where the gun was

bought, Willits Pawn; Maxfield’s parents; and Larry Moreford, who

pulled the trigger.

On May 7, the jury awarded the teenager $50.9 million in

compensatory damages.

Richard Ruggieri, the San Rafael attorney who represented

Maxfield, said Bryco’s bankruptcy should be a warning shot to gun

makers who produce faulty weapons.

During the trial, Ruggieri found that the company allocated scant

resources to test the guns or ensure safe operation.

“If anything forces them out of business, it’s their arrogant

failure to consult an engineer,” Ruggieri said. “It’s beyond

irresponsible. It’s parasitic.”

To date, Medi-Cal has covered $1 million in medical care for

Maxfield, Ruggieri said.

Some of the Bryco guns, which sell for about $80, have a

reputation for jamming.

Gun Tests magazine, the Consumer Reports of firearms products,

generally gives the “Saturday Night Specials,” as they are known, low

marks. The magazine found a “large number of malfunctions” with the

Bryco Arms J-22 in May 1996. The Bryco Model 48 was “just acceptable”

in a November 1992 rating.