News from the Hannah Gutierrez trial.
Two years after the horrific accident on the set of Rust, where Alec Baldwin accidentally shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins with a loaded prop gun while filming, rookie armorer Hannah Gutierrez is currently on trial for her role in the fatal accident.
While Baldwin insisted that he did not pull the trigger and that the prop was tampered with prior to the accident, he is being charged with involuntary manslaughter and will face trial in July. While ballistic reports show that Baldwin likely pulled the trigger, he remains steadfast in his position that he is innocent.
Hannah Gutierrez, the armorer responsible for maintaining the delivering the weapons on the set, is currently on trial in New Mexico and she as well has pleaded not guilty to charges of involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence. Most recent news from the courtroom, however, raises concern for the overall safety of the film set. Behind the scenes video footage from set showing Baldwin shooting blanks with the prop gun days before the fatal incident, even shooting after someone yells “cut.” He is also seen pointing the gun all over the place, and even directly at the camera while he barks out orders on set.
You can even hear Hannah tell people to get out of the line of fire, even though Baldwin should not be pointing the gun at people like that:
“In the path of the gun, can you please move?”
While Hannah Gutierrez was heard urging the crew to move out of its path, a firearms expert who testified shared his concern for the safety protocols and how strictly they were being enforced and that Baldwin’s behavior should have been immediately corrected.
“Once you take on the responsibility of safety for another person, you take on a responsibility of making sure you do what is necessary…even if it’s inconvenient.”
His testimony states that she is responsible for safe practice and handling all the firearms on the set, she bears responsibility tied to this case. Gutierrez’s defense noted that she was taken away from her primary role, needing to fill the gap in other areas, which also raises the question of whether there should have been two armorers on the film’s set. However, the fact that a live round was put into a gun falls solely on her.
Along with this footage, ABC News also reported that Hannah Gutierrez’s interviews with the sheriff’s office were shown during the trial. She noted she filled the guns with “dummies,” but investigators informed her that it seemed as though a live round went off, causing the horrific accident.
“‘Does that look like it would have been a live round to you?” she asked the armorer.
“That looks like a blank one,” Gutierrez initially responded before later saying, “That might be a regular live round, though.”
“That’s what they were thinking — it could be a live round,” the investigator said.
“Holy —,” Gutierrez responded.”
Later in the interview, she noted that this felt like a **** up accident,” and the police stated the following.
“Just because there was a tragedy does not mean that a crime was committed.”
Her trial continues today.
