Regional Gun Shows Caught in Political Cross Hairs

They streamed into the Orange County Fairgrounds by the thousands Saturday, sharing an affinity for guns and a mixture of anxiety and anger over proposals to further restrict firearm sales.

Many of those attending the Crossroads of the West gun show in Costa Mesa said they felt under siege in the wake of several shootings, including those at the North Valley Jewish Community Center in Granada Hills and the high school massacre in Littleton, Colo.

“We’ve been demonized so much lately by the press and the politicians,” said Bob Schmidt, 72, of Newport Beach. “It’s all so political and it hurts my feelings. Some people, out of fear and anger, have created a terrible situation.”

The shootings have prompted calls for new restrictions on firearms, such as banning so-called Saturday night specials and halting gun shows on publicly owned property. But those in Costa Mesa on Saturday said such efforts would mean losing a little more freedom and tearing away a part of what makes America great.

“Look real careful. Who do you see?” boomed Gordon Groomer, a licensed gun dealer from Garden Grove, as his beefy arm cut a swath through the air, motioning to the masses.

“I see law-abiding citizens,” Groomer said. “I see hard-working people. I see families. Husbands and wives. Fathers and sons. I see people who enjoy shooting, collecting guns and competitions. I don’t see criminals.”

Gun shows have gotten a bad rap, gun dealers, enthusiasts and promoters said. Authorities should enforce existing laws, not create new ones, they said, noting that National Rifle Assn. members and graduates of gun safety courses aren’t out committing crimes.

Besides, they said, most gun shows, including this weekend’s event in Orange County, are highly regulated. Children under 18 are not admitted unless they are accompanied by an adult. In California, a licensed dealer must be involved in any transaction, and buyers cannot claim their new handguns until 10 days later, after background checks are conducted and the guns are registered.

Those facts have been twisted or ignored by politicians and others who have taken advantage of recent tragedies, they said. Social issues--from violent entertainment to broken families--play more of a role in shootings than a gun show, many said.

Years ago, said Phyllis Weber of San Diego, children watched Roy Rogers at the movies. Now, they are mesmerized by “Natural Born Killers” or “The Matrix.”

“We’ve been blasted, blamed and harassed, and I’m sick and tired of it,” Groomer said, then startled a middle-aged father and his freckled teenage son with a question.

“Why did you come here today?” Groomer asked. “You’re not going to go out and hold up any liquor store tonight, are you?”

Bewildered, the father and son shook their heads no.

Later this week, state senators will consider a measure that would require all gun show promoters to make sure that each exhibitor is a federally licensed gun dealer. The proposal would increase the cost of sponsoring shows in California.

“Certainly, the world did change on April 20,” said Bob Templeton, owner of the Crossroads of the West gun show. That was the day two students killed 12 students and a teacher at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo. One of the weapons used had been purchased at a Colorado gun show by the 18-year-old girlfriend of one of the boys.

“That was a wake-up call for everyone,” Templeton said. “And people, they look for convenient targets of opportunity. We’re now a target of opportunity. If people have been doing things illegally at these shows, then that’s why we have to regulate them. Otherwise we won’t have a viable business.”

Erik Brown, a 23-year-old who just graduated from UC Irvine, said the new effort by Los Angeles County supervisors to outlaw gun shows at the county fairgrounds is misguided.

“Gun shows are not like some black market swap shop where people can trade weapons back and forth. That just doesn’t happen,” Brown said.

He said he came to the Costa Mesa gun show to help a friend sell some rifles and to look at war memorabilia. He bought a Confederate flag and other historical memorabilia, he said.

“Most of the stuff in here isn’t even guns,” Brown said. “It’s swords and daggers and beef jerky. Artifacts and militaria. And a lot of junk. But that’s what America is all about. It’s about free enterprise and the freedom to assemble. Freedom to be with like-minded people.”

The Orange County gun show is smaller than the one held at the Los Angeles County fairgrounds in Pomona. The proposal by Los Angeles County supervisors would prohibit shows on county-owned property, including the fairgrounds.

The Orange County Fairgrounds are owned by the state, which has placed all new gun shows on hold while it considers whether to tighten its own restrictions.

The Orange County Fair and Exposition board recently discussed whether to end the 25-year-old practice of having gun shows at the fairgrounds. The debate was brief, said the vice chairman of the board, Donald Saltarelli. The group decided to honor its contract with Crossroads of the West, which will conclude the gun show today and hold another weekend show in November.

“I think it’s a really good service to the people of this county,” Saltarelli said. “It’s the best possible place to have a gun show. Otherwise, what would people do? Where would they go to buy a gun? I think it’s best in a free society to do things out in the open. This is much better than a bunch of people getting together out in the woods someplace to buy and sell guns.”