A New Mexico grand jury has indicted actor Alec Baldwin on fourth-degree involuntary manslaughter charges in connection with the 2021 shooting on the set of the film “Rust.” This tragic incident led to the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and the injury of director Joel Souza.
Baldwin faces two charges related to involuntary manslaughter: “negligent use of a firearm” and acting “without due caution or circumspection.” These charges suggest a total disregard or indifference to the safety of others. Initially, charges against Baldwin were brought in January 2022 but were subsequently dropped for further examination of the fatal prop gun. The district attorney indicated at the time that the charges could be refiled.
This case has raised numerous questions and debates, especially in the firearms community. Articles from USA Carry, such as “Alec Baldwin Didn’t Pull the Trigger,” “Alec Baldwin Shooting,” and “Baldwin: You Need to Man Up,” have explored various aspects of the incident, including Baldwin’s handling of the firearm and the responsibilities of actors in such situations.
On October 21, 2021, while practicing drawing his prop gun, Baldwin discharged the weapon, leading to the fatal incident. The presence of live rounds mixed with prop rounds in Baldwin’s gun remains a mystery. Baldwin has maintained that he did not pull the trigger of the gun, a claim contradicted by an FBI forensic report stating that the prop gun, a .45 Colt caliber F.lli Pietta single-action revolver, couldn’t have been fired without pulling the trigger.
Halyna Hutchins’ widower, Matthew Hutchins, has expressed no desire to blame Baldwin or the producers for the incident. If convicted, Baldwin faces up to 18 months in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the armorer responsible for overseeing weapons on the “Rust” movie set, faces the same manslaughter charges as Baldwin. This development underscores the complexity and the tragic nature of the incident.
The case has sparked widespread discussions on safety protocols in film production, especially regarding the use of firearms. The incident on the “Rust” set serves as a grim reminder of the utmost importance of adhering to stringent safety measures when handling weapons, even in controlled environments like a movie set.
As the legal proceedings against Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed continue, the film industry and its stakeholders are likely to revisit and reinforce safety guidelines to prevent such unfortunate events in the future.
Couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. Mr Gun Control Baldwin has repeatedly criticized the NRA and called for the 2nd Amendment to be “rethought” as he said in a Twitter post in 2018
“I see that @DLoesch wants to “take back the truth.”And she doesn’t care how many dead bodies she has to step over in that pursuit. The Second Amendment is not a moral credit card that buys you all the guns you want. That law needs to be rethought.”
Ironic isn’t it, that so many firm supporters of the 2A have never harmed anyone, and he, being such an anti-gun crusader, manages to kill an innocent person with a gun?
The FBI is wrong. You can fire a single action revolver without pulling the trigger. If you ” fan ” the hammer, which is what he said he was doing, and release it before it locks in it’s full cocked position, it WILL fire.
Ed you are wrong. You obviously do not agree with the 2dA or you just do not understand the Single Action Army revolver. The hammer MUST be deliberately PULLED back and the trigger pulled in order to fire, furthermore, in order do what you claim, the “fan fire” method, which I have done with my own SSA revolvers, the trigger MUST be pulled and held back in order for that to happen. The only way this happened is baldwin had to have pulled the hammer back and pulled the trigger.
I have been around firearms all my life, and own numerous ones now, If you reread my comment, I said if the hammer was pulled back and released before it locked in cocked position, the gun could go off. I’m not talking fan where you would hold the trigger pulled and use your palm to pull and release the hammer multiple times in rapid succession.
Ed, please re-read your own comment.
Sorry, Paul. But the trigger must be depressed for the hammer to fall, whether it was pulled back and cocked before the trigger was pulled, or the trigger was depressed and the hammer fanned.
A correction needs to be made here;
#1 this was NOT a prop gun, none of the guns were according to previous reports. Prop guns DO NOT FIRE!!! this was an actually working pistol that the production team was also playing with during down time by going out into the desert and shooting the guns used in the movie. So you had a disaster waiting to happen by mixing the guns they were also using as toys with live ammo.
#2 they should NEVER have been using real firearms nor had live ammo anywhere nearby. In my opinion in the future no hollywood production should be allowed to have anything but not firing firearms on the set, they can carry rubber guns also.
#3 Baldwin was overall in charge of this production, therefore HE is ultimately responsible for anything that happens on the set, even though the prosecution doesn’t think so especially since this is Alex Baldwin doing a movie in NM! Funny that coming from a state that has an illegal, immoral and unconstitutional red flag law, which of course only applies to the peasants.
#4 Gutierrez-Reed should not be charged, in my opinion, as previously reported, she was not trained in firearms at all, she was hired, as I recall, as some admin assistant and baldwin designated her as the “prop manager”. I suspect if she didn’t accept the added responsibility, she would have been “let go”. Again, baldwin was the ultimate boss, he is ultimately responsible.
#5. I don’t think baldwin did this deliberately, he was just probably showing off how fast he could draw and fire the gun but never having checked to ensure the gun was clear. He WAS handling the gun, it was HIS responsibility to ensure it wasn’t loaded, and therefore he should be held responsible the same as any of us peasants would be. But knowing the left wing governor, prosecutor and top NM sheriff, baldwin will walk, small fine, probably have to go do some autograph session with the elites of NM, where as the peasantry would go to prison for life in the same situation.
#6 Finally, having owned and used in competition these types of firearms, ie: Colt Single Action Army revolvers (SAA) and Lever action Winchesters, the SAA will NOT fire without the hammer being retracted and the trigger being pulled! Period! Nearly all current production SAA’s have to include a firing pin block when the hammer is down (not retracted to the firing position) that prevents the hammer from hitting the firing pin if the pistol is dropped. Again RE Ed’s post; to “fan fire” the trigger must be held back in order to fan fire. In that process, the trigger is held back while the shooter uses the palm of their other hand to repeatedly and quickly, pull the hammer back and let it go.