Baldwin charged for 'reckless acts' leading to 'Rust' shooting
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[February 01, 2023]
By Andrew Hay
(Reuters) -Actor Alec Baldwin was charged with involuntary manslaughter
on Tuesday for showing a "reckless" disregard for safety that led to the
fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the
Western movie "Rust" in New Mexico in 2021, according to court
documents.
District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies filed charges following months of
speculation as to whether she had evidence that Baldwin acted with
criminal negligence when a revolver with which he was rehearsing fired a
live round that killed Hutchins.
Baldwin and set armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed were each charged with two
counts of involuntary manslaughter. The most serious charge, which
carries a potential sentence of five years in jail, would require
prosecutors to convince a jury that Baldwin acted with willful disregard
for the safety of others.
A lawyer for Baldwin declined to comment. Gutierrez-Reed's lawyer said
the prosecutor had "completely misunderstood the facts and has reached
the wrong conclusions."
Baldwin's case is remarkable in that there is little or no precedent for
a Hollywood actor to face criminal charges for an on-set shooting.
A statement of probable cause by the prosecution's special investigator,
Robert Shilling, made clear Baldwin was being charged as an actor and
producer on the low-budget movie.
Baldwin's failure to get sufficient firearms training, check with the
armorer whether the revolver was loaded, or address safety complaints
from crew were cited by Shilling as some of his many "extremely reckless
acts or reckless failures to act" in the 10-day period leading up to
Hutchins' death.
The "30 Rock" actor has denied responsibility for the shooting inside a
movie-set church, saying Hutchins directed him to point the gun at the
camera, he cocked the revolver but never pulled the trigger.
Baldwin said live ammunition should never have been allowed on the set
and it was the job of Gutierrez-Reed and first assistant director Dave
Halls to ensure the gun was unloaded, a position supported by many
actors and the SAG-AFTRA union.
Videos from inside the church prior to the shooting show Baldwin with
his finger on the trigger, Shilling said.
An FBI forensic test of the revolver found it "functioned normally" and
would not fire without the trigger being pulled.
The prosecution used Baldwin's comments to media against him, saying the
investigation showed he deviated from firearm safety protocols that he
laid out in television interviews.
"Baldwin would have been better served not making public statements
about these incidents," said Kate Mangels, an attorney with
entertainment law firm Kinsella Weitzman Iser Kump Holley.
Still, prosecutors could face long odds convincing a jury Baldwin is
criminally liable as he was assured the gun was not loaded and it will
be difficult to blame him for all the movie's alleged safety failures,
legal analysts said
No other "Rust" producer has been charged.
[to top of second column]
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Actor Alec Baldwin departs his home, as
he will be charged with involuntary manslaughter for the fatal
shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the movie
"Rust", in New York, U.S., January 31, 2023. REUTERS/David 'Dee'
Delgado
LIVE ROUNDS
Charging documents held Gutierrez-Reed responsible for "allowing
live ammunition on the set," but did not accuse her of physically
introducing them onto the production.
Gutierrez-Reed has said she brought two boxes of dummy rounds onto
the set from a previous movie. Supply company PDQ Arms and Prop also
provided dummy rounds and blanks. An FBI test found live long Colt
.45 rounds taken from PDQ in Albuquerque did not match those found
at the movie set, including the round that killed Hutchins and
wounded director Joel Souza.
As armorer responsible for firearm safety and training,
Gutierrez-Reed failed to provide sufficient instruction to Baldwin,
check rounds loaded into the revolver or remain present in the
rehearsal to ensure the actor did not point the weapon at Hutchins,
the special investigator said.
Gutierrez-Reed has said she checked that the rounds were dummies
before handing the gun to Halls and leaving the church due to COVID
protocols. Halls then handed it to Baldwin, telling him it was a
"cold gun," meaning it did not contain an explosive charge,
according to police.
Halls has signed a plea deal for a misdemeanor charge and is
expected to cooperate with the prosecution.
Gutierrez-Reed has said producers denied her requests for extra
firearms training, including with Baldwin.
Gabrielle Pickle, line producer on the movie, on Dec. 20 testified
to New Mexico's worker safety agency (OSHA) that all of
Gutierrez-Reed's requests for extra days for armorer duties were
granted.
On Dec. 7 Gutierrez-Reed testified to OSHA that Baldwin's lack of
knowledge and "poor form" in using a revolver may have led to the
discharge that killed Hutchins.
Her lawyer Jason Bowles said Halls, her senior in the production,
was at fault for not calling Gutierrez-Reed back into the church to
perform her armorer duties.
"We will fight these charges and expect that a jury will find Hannah
not guilty," he said in a statement.
The defendants face a court arraignment, which can be done
virtually, then a preliminary hearing where a judge will decide
whether there is probable cause to move forward with a trial.
Preliminary hearings are typically scheduled within 60 days of
charges being filed.
(Reporting by Andrew Hay in Taos, New Mexico; additional reporting
by Brad Brooks in Lubbock, Texas; Editing by Jonathan Oatis, Rosalba
O'Brien and Leslie Adler)
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