'Rust' Production Company Fined Over $100K For 'Willful & Serious' Safety Violations
By Kristin Myers on April 20, 2022 at 1:15 PM EDT
Updated on April 20, 2022 at 2:56 PM EDT
The “Rust” production company has been fined over $100,000 dollars for “willful and serious” safety violations.
According to Deadline, the New Mexico Occupational Health and Safety Bureau issued the production company with a fine of $136,793 dollars for these safety violations. The fine, which was the maximum allowed, comes after the Bureau’s six-month-long investigation into the circumstances that led to the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza on October 21.
Over 14 interviews were conducted and 566 documents were reviewed to lead the Bureau to this conclusion.
‘Rust’ Production Company Accused Of ‘Serious Management Failures’
Environment Cabinet Secretary James Kenney said “There were serious management failures and more than sufficient evidence to suggest that if standard industry practices were followed, the fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins and the serious injury to Joel Souza would not have occurred.
Both Hutchins and Souza were struck by a bullet that was inside a gun that was being held by actor Alec Baldwin, who claimed that the gun was not loaded. He has also claimed that he did not pull the trigger on the gun when he pointed it at the camera during a rehearsal scene inside a church at the Bonanza Creek Ranch outside Santa Fe.
The report stated that the Rust Movie Productions LLC’s management “knew that firearm safety procedures were not being followed on set and demonstrated plain indifference to employee safety by failing to review work practices and take corrective action.”
The production company was slapped with a “willful-serious citation” with a $136,793 civil penalty, which is “the highest level of citation and maximum fine allowable by state law in New Mexico,” according to the Bureau, which went on to say, “Rust Movie Productions, LLC was cited for the plain indifference to the recognized hazards associated with the use of firearms on set that resulted in a fatality, severe injury, and unsafe working conditions.”
Bureau Says That ‘Rust’ Production Company Failed To Adhere To Safety Guidelines On Set
The Bureau stated, “While the film industry has clear national guidelines for firearms safety, Rust Movie Productions, LLC failed to follow these guidelines or take other effective measures to protect workers.”
“Rust Movie Productions, LLC’s documents indicate that it would follow the Industry-Wide Labor-Management Safety Committee’s Safety Bulletin #1, ‘Recommendations for Safety With Firearms and Use of ‘Blank Ammunition,’ but failed to adhere to these guidelines on set,” they continued.
The guidelines state that live ammunition should “never be used nor brought onto any studio lot or stage.” It also states that safety meetings are supposed to take place every day when firearms are being handled and that employees should “refrain from pointing a firearm at anyone” except after consultation with the armorer, property master, or another safety advisor.
Kenney said, “Our investigation found that this tragic incident never would have happened if Rust Movie Productions, LLC had followed national film industry standards for firearm safety. This is a complete failure of the employer to follow recognized national protocols that keep employees safe.”
‘Rust’ Criminal Investigation Is Still Ongoing
The “Rust” production company now has fifteen business days to either pay the citation, provide the OHSB with a certification of corrective action, or contest the citation with the Occupational Health and Safety Review Commission. If the production company ever wishes to try to resume filming “Rust” in the future, these violations will need to be abated before filming can resume.
OHSB Bureau Chief Robert Genoway said, “Employees should speak up about unsafe workplace conditions or report them anonymously to us. As a reminder, it is illegal for any employer to retaliate against any employee who alleges a workplace safety violation.”
This investigation is separate from the criminal investigation being conducted by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office. Alec Baldwin has yet to be criminally charged for his role in the shooting, which is still under investigation and unrelated to the citation issued by the Bureau.
Several civil lawsuits have also been filed against the “Rust” production company and its producers, which includes Alec Baldwin. In mid-February, the Hutchins family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the producers, although Baldwin has been taking legal steps to indemnify himself from being held legally accountable for Hutchins’ death.
