Rust production wanted to fire ‘difficult to work with’ armourer before Alec Baldwin shooting

‘Rust’ armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is facing two counts of involuntary manslaughter and one count of witness tampering connected to the shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in October 2021.

Gutierrez-Reed has pleaded not guilty to all three counts.

Jury selection began earlier this week. Opening arguments are expected to begin on Thursday.

Attorneys prepared to make opening statements Thursday at the first trial related to the fatal shooting of a cinematographer by actor Alec Baldwin during a rehearsal for the Western film “Rust.”

Before Baldwin’s case progresses, the movie’s weapons supervisor is being tried on charges of involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on Oct. 21, 2021, on a movie ranch outside Santa Fe.

Armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed has pleaded not guilty to the charges and says she’s not directly to blame for Hutchins’ death. In court filings, lead defense counsel Jason Bowles has pointed to findings by workplace safety regulators of broad problems that extended beyond the armorer’s control.

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The armourer who gave Alec Baldwin a gun on the set of the doomed movie “Rust“ is about to go on trial in connection to the accidental shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

On 21 October 2021, a film crew was shooting scenes in New Mexico for the now infamous western.

At one point, Baldwin was rehearsing a scene where he would aim one of the set’s period-appropriate revolvers at the camera.

The prop gun fired and a real bullet struck Hutchins. She died from her injuries.

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was working as the set’s armourer — responsible for the maintenance, storage, and use of weapons and firearms on the production.

Following Hutchins’ death, both Ms Gutierrez-Reed and Baldwin were hit with charges.

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Alec Baldwin pleaded not guilty to a renewed involuntary manslaughter charge in the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, which occurred on the set of the movie Rust in 2021.

The actor filed a waiver of arraignment on Wednesday (31 January), choosing to plead not guilty a day before a scheduled virtual appearance in the state district court of Santa Fe, New Mexico, which will no longer take place.

Baldwin, the lead actor and a co-producer on the Western movie, was pointing a prop gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal outside Santa Fe in October 2021 when the gun went off, discharging a real bullet that killed her and wounded director Joel Souza.

A grand jury in Santa Fe indicted Baldwin in January after prosecutors received a new analysis of that gun, renewing a charge that prosecutors originally filed and then dismissed in April 2023. Baldwin faces up to 18 months in prison if convicted. READ MORE:

“Rust” armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s involuntary manslaughter trial will begin today, just a little later than expected.

A juror reportedly got stuck in traffic on the way to the court house.

KOB4 reporter Spencer Schnact, who is covering the trial, said an accident in Santa Fe apparently stalled the juror.

Prosecutors in New Mexico want more accountability for the 2021 death of a cinematographer who was fatally shot by actor Alec Baldwin during a rehearsal for the Western film “Rust.”

Before Baldwin’s case progresses, the armorer on the set will be tried on charges of involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence. Jury selection in Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s trial starts today in Santa Fe.

Gutierrez-Reed has pleaded not guilty to the charges and maintains she’s not directly to blame for Halyna Hutchins‘ death. Baldwin also has pleaded not guilty to an involuntary manslaughter charge in a separate case.

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The prosecution opened the trial against “Rust” armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed by saying it planned to answer two questions.

The first: what led to the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins?

The second: how did live ammunition end up on the film’s set?

During opening arguments, prosecutor Jason Lewis said live ammunition never should have been on the set of “Rust,” and that answering the question as to how the ammo ended up there would be a key element of their case against armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed.

Gutierrez-Reed has been charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter and a count of evidence tampering.

“The prospect of live ammunition ending up on a film set is incomprehensible,” he said. He further claimed that the state’s witnesses would attest to Gutierrez-Reed being “unprofessional and sloppy” on set, and that she “routinely left guns and ammunition around the set unattended.”