Date Set to Sell Defunct Maker of Guns

A federal judge overseeing the bankruptcy of gun maker Bryco Arms has set Aug. 12 as the date the Costa Mesa company’s assets will be auctioned off in a Florida courtroom.

Bryco and its founder, Bruce Jennings, filed for bankruptcy last year after a jury slapped them with a multimillion-dollar judgment for manufacturing a defectively designed handgun that was used in the accidental shooting of a Mendocino County teenager a decade ago.

In June, Bryco’s former plant manager offered $150,000 for the dormant company, one of the last of a group of gun makers that once pumped out millions of inexpensive Saturday night specials. Paul Jimenez has said he intends to restart the company and has applied for the necessary state and federal firearms licenses.

But U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Jerry A. Funk delayed the sale in order to give creditors time to file objections.

Since then, a group headed by the legal team of Brandon Maxfield, the 17-year-old who was left a quadriplegic after he was shot, offered $175,000 -- money that was largely raised through an Internet campaign. Lawyers for Maxfield want to buy the company to ensure Bryco never reopens.

That bid and the objections of at least two Bryco creditors who told the court they want the company to be sold for as much money as possible led Funk to set the August date, when Bryco will be sold to the highest bidder.