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Home/ stevenwarran's Library/ Notes/ January 24, 1989, The Washington Post, Massacre Boosts Sales of Assault Rifle; California Gun Shops Tie Increase to Threat to Ban AKM Weapon, by Jay Mathews,

January 24, 1989, The Washington Post, Massacre Boosts Sales of Assault Rifle; California Gun Shops Tie Increase to Threat to Ban AKM Weapon, by Jay Mathews,

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January 24, 1989, The Washington Post, Massacre Boosts Sales of Assault Rifle; California Gun Shops Tie Increase to Threat to Ban AKM Weapon, by Jay Mathews,

Widespread publicity about last week's massacre of five schoolchildren in Stockton and threats to ban the AKM assault rifle that was used have created a surge in sales of the deadly semi-automatic weapon throughout Southern California, gun dealers reported today.

"A lot of people who didn't know you could buy it are coming in, and they're impressed with its level of efficiency," said Al Campbell, manager of Western Surplus in gang-ridden south-central Los Angeles.

According to a cashier at Turner's Outdoorsman in Culver City: "A father came in to buy two semi-automatics for his sons, before they outlaw them, he said." Steve Jardine of Southern California Guns in San Diego and Paul Claxton of the War Bunker and Hobbies Shop in Bakersfield also said sales had increased.

Gun dealers throughout the state said calls and orders for the light, self-loading, Soviet-designed weapon began to climb within a day or two of news about the tragedy that occurred at Cleveland Elementary School in Stockton last Tuesday.

Patrick Edward Purdy, 24, a welder with what one investigator called a "military hang-up," killed five children and wounded 29 children and one teacher with a legally purchased AKM before killing himself with a pistol.

Democratic leaders of the state legislature said they would try again to pass a ban on assault rifles, such as the AKM, a modernized version of the AK47. A similar bill failed last year because of opposition from the National Rifle Association.

The lawmakers said they were heartened by comments sympathetic to their efforts from Gov. George Deukmejian (R), whose opposition in 1982 to a gun-control measure helped him win the governorship.

Campbell attributed the sales surge to publicity about the gun's power and relatively low cost and to concern that it might soon be unavailable. "We usually sell about two or three a week," he said. "In the last week, we have sold 15." His price on the Yugoslav-made version is $429, including three empty ammunition clips.

Countering the trend, one gun dealer in Orange County announced that his store was cleaning out its inventory of assault rifles. "The shooting in Stockton brought it to a head, but we have been thinking about this for some time," said Randy Garell, president of The Grant Boys store in Costa Mesa.

Garell said he and the store's other managers concluded that it was wrong to sell such weapons among sports, camping and hunting gear. "What it came down to is reasonableness," he said. "I think when the Founding Fathers guaranteed {the} right to bear arms they didn't mean selling an assault rifle to an 18-year-old over the counter."

Garell said that he generally supported the NRA and did not want to criticize dealers who continued to sell AKMs but that telephone calls and comments from customers after his announcement had been "90 percent positive."

A check of eight gun shops in Maryland and Virginia indicated no surge in sales of the 7.62mm weapon.

Federal law prohibits sale of such assault rifles to convicted felons, illegal aliens and others identified as threats to society. If a buyer signs a federal form saying he does not fall into any of those groups, he may buy the weapon. Federal officials say the form is rarely, if ever, checked for accuracy.

Campbell said he sells twice as many AKMs as the second most popular assault rifle, the Israeli Uzi. He acknowledged that many gang members in his area carry such weapons but said they "prefer to buy them on the street or steal them."

His customers, he said, are gun collectors or people who feel more secure with a particularly powerful weapon. He was not surprised, he said, by the AKMs surge in popularity: "After Reagan was shot with a .22-caliber pistol, we went from selling about six .22-calibers a week to as high as 60 a week."

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on Jul 29, 13