‘Rust’ Armorer’s Lawyers Put Blame On Alec Baldwin During Trial Opening Statements

Actor Alec Baldwin may not be on trial just yet, but he was mentioned heavily as the trial against “Rust” armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed began on Thursday, February 22, 2024.

On Wednesday, a jury of seven men and five women was selected to hear the state’s case against the rookie armorer, where she had been charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Although it was Alec Baldwin, not Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who was holding the gun in question, prosecutors claim that Gutierrez-Reed was the one who brought live ammunition to set and mistakenly loaded the gun with a live bullet when she was, allegedly, intoxicated.

Prosecutors have also charged her with tampering with evidence after they claim a witness told them that she transferred a bag of cocaine to them on the day Hutchins was killed, thus impeding the police investigation. Hannah Gutierrez-Reed has pleaded not guilty to both charges.

Thursday’s trial began with the prosecution alleging that “Rust” armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was “negligent” on set when Halyna Hutchins was killed on October 21, 2021. “We intend to call several witnesses to give testimony that she regularly failed to properly carry out her duties as an armorer,” said special prosecutor Jason Lewis, as per Deadline.

Going on to describe her conduct on set as “unprofessional and sloppy,” Lewis showed the Santa Fe jury a photo of the long-barrel Colt gun before adding, “You will hear testimony that [Gutierrez-Reed] routinely left guns and ammunition lying around the set unattended and that her gun safe and ammo cart were constantly disorganized.”

However, Gutierrez-Reed’s lawyer, Jason Bowles, told the jury that his client was merely being used as a “scapegoat” and that Hutchins’ death was an unfortunate accident that didn’t warrant criminal charges. “Just because there was a tragedy doesn’t mean a crime was committed,” Jason Bowles told the jury. “It does not mean that Hannah Gutierrez-Reed caused the crimes they have charged her with.”

He accused prosecutors of “trying to blame it all on Hannah […] because she is an easy target” and referred to her as “the least powerful person on that set.” He then referred to an OSHA report from April 2022, in which the New Mexico Occupational Health and Safety Bureau slapped Rust Movie Productions LLC with a maximum $136,793 fine for “willful and serious” safety violations found on the set of the Western film.

“It wasn’t Ms. Gutierrez-Reed; it was Mr. Baldwin,” Bowles told the jury, adding, “You’re going hear again Mr. Baldwin — one of the lead producers, head actor in the movie, who really controlled the set — you’re going to hear that he violated some of the most basic gun-safety rules you can ever learn.”

“From a young age, we all learn you don’t point a gun at somebody ever unless you want to shoot them. You treat all guns as loaded, and you keep your finger out of the trigger until you’re ready to shoot. He violated all those,” Bowles continued, although Alec Baldwin is not expected to be called as a witness in this case.

In January 2023, both Hannah Gutierrez-Reed and Alec Baldwin were charged with involuntary manslaughter for the death of “Rust” cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. However, in the spring of 2023, the charges against the “30 Rock” actor were dropped pending further investigation into the gun. In January 2024, the charges against Baldwin were refiled. The actor submitted a not guilty plea on January 31. According to court documents issued by the state of New Mexico, the last day to submit a change of plea is July 22, 2024. However, that may change.

Although he was originally scheduled to appear in court on August 6, 2024, the trial date has been moved to another date that has yet to be determined. On Tuesday, February 20, Baldwin’s lawyers appeared at a hearing with prosecutors and the judge in order to determine a new start date for the trial; however, they were unable to come to a consensus.

As part of the conditions of his release, Baldwin is not allowed to drink alcohol or do any drugs. He also is not allowed to keep any firearms or weapons and must obey all state, local, and federal laws. He may not discuss the “Rust” incident with those who worked with him on set; however, he is allowed to maintain contact with them as it relates to the “Rust” film which wrapped filming last spring. A release date has yet to be announced.

Attorney Gloria Allred, who represents Halyna Hutchins' mother, father, and sister in a civil lawsuit against "Rust" producers spoke out on Thursday afternoon following the start of the trial.

"Today is a win for Halyna’s family. At today’s hearing in our civil case, the Court affirmed the obvious – that grieving families have a right to pursue loss of consortium damages related to the death of their loved one under New Mexico law – which will be enforced in California courts against Baldwin and Rust producers," she said in her statement.

"Based on today’s ruling, we embrace the opportunity to amend our complaint to provide more facts regarding the truth, that the relationships between Halyna and her family have always been the kind of sufficiently close and mutually beneficial relationships recognized under the law of New Mexico," she continued. "Statements made on behalf of Alec Baldwin by his attorneys in an attempt to dismiss the legal claims of Halyna’s mother, father and sister that Halyna's family had been 'distanced from Halyna' for years before he shot and killed her are both shameful and wholly unsubstantiated. We are confident that the Court will recognize the tremendous loss of Halyna’s parents and sister caused by his killing of Halyna on October 21, 2021."