‘Rust’ Prosecutors Claim Alec Baldwin Was Reckless With Firearms On Set

The “Rust” criminal trial against actor Alec Baldwin is less than a month away as the “30 Rock” actor’s legal team continues to try to get the case thrown out of court.

Things aren’t looking good for Baldwin, as armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was found guilty and sentenced to the state maximum of 18 months behind bars for the involuntary manslaughter of Halyna Hutchins.

“Rust” prosecutors allege that Alec Baldwin was reckless with firearms on set, which warrants criminal charges.

The legal drama between Baldwin’s legal team and special prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey has spilled into headlines for some time now. In her latest court filing on July 18, Morrissey alleged that Alec Baldwin was negligent with a firearm even before Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot and killed at the Bonanza Creek Ranch on October 21, 2021.

In court documents obtained by TMZ, the “Supercell” actor allegedly was reckless with a gun when he “recklessly pointed and fired a blank round at a crew member while using the crew member as a line of site.” Morrissey also claims that the prosecution has evidence that Baldwin would use the gun to point at people when directing crew members.

Alec Baldwin is collaborating with director Joel Souza on the indie Western film. Souza was also hospitalized as a result of the incident when the bullet passed through Halyna Hutchins and struck him. At one point, prosecutors allege that Alec Baldwin fired a revolver after Souza had already yelled “Cut!” when rehearsing a scene.

Prosecutors also claim that he filmed several scenes with his finger on the trigger of his gun, even when scenes did not call for the gun to be fired. This was something that director Joel Souza had testified to during Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s trial, although admitting that Alec Baldwin did not load the firearm with live ammunition.

Although it remains to be seen if Hannah Gutierrez-Reed will testify during the trial, the prosecution alleges that they have evidence that Alec Baldwin would rush the rookie armorer to reload in between takes. Hannah Gutierrez-Reed had only worked on one set prior to filming “Rust” and had been stressed trying to complete duties as both armorer and prop master.

It seems that the prosecution’s case might heavily involve the jailed armorer, as they also allege that Hannah Gutierrez-Reed had difficulty getting Alec Baldwin to pay attention during training sessions. They allege that Baldwin would text or FaceTime his family during firearm safety training, instead of paying attention to his lessons.

On Sunday, the “Beetlejuice” actor celebrated Father’s Day with an Instagram carousel with the seven children that he shares with his wife Hilaria Baldwin. He also shares a daughter Ireland with actress Kim Basinger. “Happy Father’s Day to the dads out there,” he wrote in the caption of an Instagram post, which attracted a significant amount of negative attention.

Many users felt that his 10-year-old daughter Carmen was wearing too much makeup. “All that makeup on a 10-year-old? Looks terrible unless you are in a dance show,” one fan commented. “Why does a 10-year-old wear makeup?” another follower asked. Still, some fans did jump in to defend Baldwin’s parenting, telling others to “mind your own business.”

“I am a nurse who sometimes works in schools. Guess what - even wee kindergarten kids put on makeup and wear it to school. Little girls wear tutus, tiaras, and poorly applied blue and green eye shadow. They are PLAYING! If you are seeing something inappropriate or sinister, that's on you,” one user wrote while another added, “Yes, dear lord ……. My god, it’s very obvious they are excellent parents. Alec’s children are beautiful and loved and you folks need to worry about yourself instead of being negative about a beautiful picture of this family!”

Alec Baldwin's trial is scheduled to begin on July 9, 2024. If convicted, he could face up to 18 months behind bars, which might put a pin in his planned reality show on TLC.