Prosecutors Claim ‘Rust’ Producers ‘Obstructed’ Investigation Into Halyna Hutchins’ Death

On October 21, 2021, “Rust” cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot and killed on the set of the Western film when a gun held by actor Alec Baldwin went off.

Although the “30 Rock” actor maintains he never pulled the trigger, both he and “Rust” armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed were charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter in January 2023. In April, charges were dropped against the 65-year-old actor. At the time, special prosecutors admitted that it was possible that the modified weapon had the potential to go off without the trigger being pulled.

In early June, they said that they would submit the prop gun for further testing and make a decision on whether or not to charge the actor again within sixty days. Although Baldwin has yet to be charged, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is facing an additional charge of tampering with evidence after special prosecutors claimed that a witness came forward to say that she had transferred cocaine to another individual while the police were investigating Hutchins’ death.

Although they have claimed that Gutierrez-Reed’s possible transfer of narcotics impeded the criminal investigation into Hutchins’ death, on Friday, special prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey told a New Mexico judge on Friday that “Rust” producers have also attempted to obstruct the investigation into the death of the cinematographer.

On Friday, October 6, special prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey told District Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer on Friday that “Rust” producers had attempted to interfere with the way law enforcement officials investigated the shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in October 2021.

“Rust Productions has either intervened, interfered, or obstructed the criminal investigation in this case,” special prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey said, as per Deadline. “This entire tragedy occurred because Rust Productions cut corners every chance they could and they hired inexperienced and ill-equipped crew members.”

The livestreamed court hearing was part of the ongoing criminal investigation against Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, which will go to trial on February 21, 2024. The trial was originally scheduled for December 2023 but had been delayed due to the difficulty of scheduling witnesses.

During Friday’s hearing, special prosecutors attempted to gain more information on Alec Baldwin’s true role on the “Rust” set. Although he is the starring actor in the film, he also has been listed as a producer on the set of the Western film. However, his legal team has argued that he only served as a producer in a creative capacity, as he came up with the idea for the film with director Joel Souza, who wrote the script.

Although special prosecutors want to know if Baldwin was involved with the film’s budget and hiring of crew members, Rust Movie Productions, LLC. has argued that the state’s subpoena to turn over all of the documents would be “burdensome.” They have also argued that the records impacting Baldwin are not relevant to the trial against Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who is the only one currently facing charges.

Court documents obtained by The Blast in early October show that special prosecutors are now looking into the possibility that Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was denied the ability to provide additional gun handling training to actor Alec Baldwin, as she requested days before the shooting.

The court filing claims that “Ms. Gutierrez alleges she made requests for additional armorer days and for additional time to provide gun handling training to Mr. Baldwin.” However, those claims were apparently denied. “Ms. Gutierrez asserts that it is her belief these requests were denied for financial/budgetary reasons,” the document adds.

The state of New Mexico argues in the court documents that the state “should be permitted to explore” if her request to give Baldwin more training was “denied due to financial considerations” and “not due to safety or other reasonable considerations.” They also questioned if the “motives” at play in the decision altered the armorer’s ability to do her job.

“Similarly, Mr. Baldwin’s contracts may provide that he receive a percentage of the profits from the movie, again demonstrating that financial gain may have impacted Ms. Gutierrez’s ability to perform her job as an armorer,” the documents state. “As this Court is aware, the special prosecutors have a duty to investigate potentially exculpatory evidence, and as to Ms. Gutierrez, if it is proven true, it is exculpatory.”