Alec Baldwin, 'Rust' Producers Ordered To Turn In Unredacted Documents For Investigation
By Kristin Myers on October 10, 2023 at 5:35 PM EDT
Actor Alec Baldwin and other "Rust" producers must hand over all documents related to the production of the Western film.
According to new court documents obtained by The Blast, a court ordered that all unredacted written agreements, contracts, memo of understanding, letters of intents, etc. have to be turned over to the state of New Mexico as the state continues its criminal case against "Rust" armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed.
Court Orders Alec Baldwin and 'Rust' Producers To Hand In ALL Unredacted Documents
On Tuesday, October 10, The Blast obtained court documents showing that Rust Movie Productions, LLC. attempted to quash subpoenas from the state of New Mexico and filed motions for protective orders in two separate instances.
The first was to turn over "all written agreements, contracts, memoranda of understanding(s) and letters of intent by and between Rust Movie Productions, Inc. and Alexander R. Baldwin III for the period of January 1, 2020 through October 21, 2021."
The other was "All written agreements, contracts, memoranda of understanding(s) and letters of intent by and between Rust Movie Productions, Inc. and El Dorado Pictures for the period of January 1, 2020 through October 21, 2021."
Although "Rust" producers attempted to prevent the release of the documents, a judge denied their request and is ordering them to turn over the documents by October 20. As the court documents state: "It is further ordered that Rust Productions, LLC shall provide unredacted documents in response to the subpoena and shall do so by close of business on 10/20/23."
Trial For Hannah Gutierrez-Reed Delayed Until 2024
Although the trial against Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was initially scheduled for December 2023, it has been delayed until February 2024, reportedly due to issues with bringing in witnesses.
In January 2023, both Hannah Gutierrez-Reed and Alec Baldwin were charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter for the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, which occurred on October 21, 2021. Gutierrez-Reed was not present in the church when Hutchins was killed.
A modified Colt revolver that Baldwin was holding for the scene went off while the crew was rehearsing. It is still unclear how live ammunition ended up inside the firearm, but one of the bullets struck Hutchins and entered director Joel Souza, who was hospitalized as a result of the incident. Hutchins passed away from her injuries.
Although the "30 Rock" actor was charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter, the charges against him were dropped without prejudice in April 2023 as "Rust" special prosecutors continued their investigation into the shooting. In early June, they said that they would reach a decision within sixty days; however, they have still not come to a final decision if they will charge the 65-year-old yet again for his role in the shooting.
The following month, special prosecutors slapped Hannah Gutierrez-Reed with an additional charge of tampering with evidence after they claimed that a witness had come forward with new information over a year after Hutchins was killed. This person claims that Gutierrez-Reed transferred an unspecified amount of cocaine to another individual on the day that Hutchins was killed, thus possibly impeding the police investigation into the cinematographer's death.
Armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed Claims She Was Denied Additional Gun Training
On Tuesday, October 3, 2023, The Blast received new court documents filed by the state of New Mexico over a protective order and a subpoena that address the claim that Hannah Gutierrez-Reed had asked for additional gun training and was denied.
“Ms. Gutierrez alleges she made requests for additional armorer days and for additional time to provide gun handling training to Mr. Baldwin,” meaning that Gutierrez-Reed had requested additional days to train Alec Baldwin on how to handle a firearm and was denied. “Ms. Gutierrez asserts that it is her belief these requests were denied for financial/budgetary reasons,” the document adds.
“This is an appropriate line of inquiry for the State to explore by reviewing the agreements between Mr. Baldwin and the various production companies to determine whether there were financial or other considerations involved in the decision to deny Ms. Gutierrez to work additional armorer days and/or provide additional training days to Mr. Baldwin,” the court filing states. “For example, Mr. Baldwin’s agreements likely require that he receive a certain amount of compensation for each day filming or for each day performing tasks related to filming, such as firearm training.”
The state of New Mexico says that it “should be permitted to explore” if Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s requests for additional firearm training were “denied due to financial considerations” and “not due to safety or other reasonable considerations.”
Now that the court has decided that "Rust" producers must hand over the documents, it remains to be seen if it will alter the charges against Hannah Gutierrez-Reed or Alec Baldwin.
