Beverly Hills’ only gun shop, Beverly Hills Guns, received an order on April 7 advising the shop that it has 60 days to close.
Store owner Russell Stuart told Breitbart News the order came from property management. He recounted that his secretary received an envelope and walked to Stuart with sorrow in her eyes.
Stuart opened the envelope and read the order.
Beverly Hills Guns has been in existence for two years, at the same address, with zero issues. Stuart explained that the order to shutter the current store means he will have to find a new location, sign a lease, and only after signing a lease, get a new license from the ATF, approval from the California DOJ, and approval from the city of Beverly Hills. The cost in time, moving, and loss in sales could be astronomical.
Stuart told Breitbart News, “Beverly Hills Guns has been one of the most popular retail stores in the city and I’ve been incredibly proud of the work that we’ve been able to do to bring the Second Amendment to the city of Beverly Hills and to its residents, who have been experiencing one of the worst crime waves in the city’s history… As the 204th ranked safest city in California behind Long Beach and Inglewood, I am sad to see that the owners of my office do not feel the need to have a store like mine in their building during this crucial and dangerous time for our residents.”
On December 30, 2021, Breitbart News reported that the rich and famous were flocking to Beverly Hills Guns for protection from the craziness that has overtaken day-to-day life in Los Angeles.
At that time, Stuart told Los Angeles Magazine that his clientele included “prominent actors, real estate moguls and film execs.”
He noted surging sales in response to the crime that has overtaken Los Angeles, saying, “Everyone has a general sense of constant fear, which is very sad. We’re used to this being like Mayberry.”
Crime in Los Angeles continues to surge, posing a danger to law-abiding citizens.
For example, on March 23, 2022, Breitbart News reported that LAPD chief Michael Moore noted robberies with a firearm were up 44 percent in Los Angeles. But in less than 60 days, Beverly Hills Guns will be shuttered and will not be there to sell home defense and self-defense firearms to concerned, law-abiding citizens.
AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio and a Turning Point USA Ambassador. Follow him on Instagram: @awr_hawkins. Reach him at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.