Boy paralyzed by a gun shot to the face aged 7, who turned down a $3M payout in exchange for having weapons destroyed and saving others, dies of his injuries 22 years after accident 

  • Brandon Maxfield has died from quadriplegia at home in Willits, California
  • Babysitter accidentally shot him trying to unload gun; left him paralyzed 
  • Won record $24 million jury award against gun maker Bryco Arms in 2003
  • But company filed for bankruptcy and Maxfield struggled to get the money
  • Still requested that $3 million worth of guns be destroyed instead of sold

By Clemence Michallon For Dailymail.com

Published: 15:58 EST, 19 November 2016 | Updated: 17:42 EST, 19 November 2016

An anti-gun advocate who was left paralyzed after getting accidentally shot in the face has died of complications from paralysis aged 29.

Brandon Maxfield, who had quadriplegia, died at home in Willits, California last week and was buried on Saturday.

A babysitter accidentally shot him in the chin and spine when he was just 7 years old while trying to unload the gun.

Maxfield fought to take down the gun manufacturer, Bryco Arms, and its owner Bruce Jennings. He won a record $24 million jury award in 2003 but the company filed for bankruptcy, meaning Maxfield struggled to collect the sum.

Anti-gun advocate Brandon Maxfield (pictured), 29, died at home in Willits, California last week of complications from quadriplegia and was buried on Saturday

But $3 million worth of Bryco's guns were still destroyed at his request rather than sold - even though the money could have gone to him.

Doctors were unsure whether Maxfield would survive the injuries that left him paralyzed as a child. 

Maxfield, who was left paralyzed from the neck down and needed a ventilator to breathe at night, later vowed to get Bryco's cheap guns off the streets, hoping that no one would suffer another accident as tragic as his.

The babysitter had been trying to unload the .380-caliber pistol when it discharged. Maxfield's attorney, Richard Ruggieri, told the court that the gun would usually jam if someone tried to remove a bullet when the safety was on.

Maxfield (pictured left before being paralyzed and right with his mother) was accidentally shot by his babysitter aged 7 due to a defective gun, which the babysitter was trying to unload

Bryco, according to Ruggieri, decided not to spend money to fix the problem and instead changed the instructions, telling gun owners to disable the safety before unloading the pistol.

This, according to Ruggieri, was like telling drivers to unfasten their seat belts right before a crash.

Jennings declared bankruptcy after a jury awarded Maxfield $24 million - and moved into a 3,000-square-foot home with an airplane hangar, the Los Angeles Times wrote.

The company could have sold 20,000 guns for up to $3 million, which could have gone towards Maxfield's payment - but Maxfield refused and instead requested that the guns be destroyed.

A jury awarded Maxfield (pictured aged 17) $24 million after he sued gun manufacturer Bryco Arms. The company's owner, Bruce Jennings, filed for bankruptcy

Maxfield (pictured aged 17 with his grandmother, center, and his mother, right) refused to let $3 million worth of Bryco guns be sold and instead requested they be destroyed

'I was proud of him,' Ruggieri told the Los Angeles Times. 'He channeled all of his energy into his belief that what happened to him should never happen to anyone else.'

Jennings is currently serving a 10-year sentence in prison for distributing child pornography.

Maxfield, who loved music, video games and the WWF, was a straight-A student who graduated from Willits High School with a 4.0 GPA.

His hero was Christopher Reeve, who became a quadriplegic after a horseback riding injury.

Maxfield, who had a brief marriage, visited Hawaii on a cruise and traveled to Las Vegas as well as the East and Northwest coast.

Family friend Mike Harkins said that Maxfield's health had declined lately and that he had issues with his lungs and circulation.

He praised the way Maxfield fought against Bryco while maintaining 'self-pride without ego'.

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