One man, Clint Sanderson, threatened to break the taillights of Schanze's Jaguar and picked up a rock. Schanze pulled out a 10 mm Glock pistol from a pants pocket, then put it away.

During the one day of testimony, witness accounts varied as to how Schanze held the gun and what he did with it.

The prosecutor argued that Schanze overreacted, used the gun in a threatening manner, which is against the law, and that there was no self-defense involved in the situation. But the defense attorney said Schanze was justified in getting the weapon ready when confronted by three yelling strangers acting like "vigilantes" because Schanze was afraid for his own safety, that of his 8-year-old daughter who was with him, and for his car.

W. Clark Aposhian, a firearms instructor who certified Schanze for a concealed weapon permit and formerly worked for Schanze, said if Schanze had been convicted on the gun charge, he would have lost his permit to carry a concealed weapon.

Schanze pledged to continue to carry guns, either concealed with the permit that he now holds, or if he should ever lose that, then carrying them openly, which also is legal in Utah.

He said his only regret in the situation is the speeding, which he said he admitted to and for which he apologized.

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E-mail: lindat@desnews.com