Alec Baldwin Missed Gun Safety Training Before ‘Rust’ Incident, Prosecutors Say

Santa Fe DA also cites a claim from armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed that the actor was “distracted” while attending a different training session

Alec Baldwin's role in an on-set death on "Rust" highlighted the issue of crew safety.
Alec Baldwin's role in an on-set death on "Rust" highlighted the issue of crew safety.

Alec Baldwin did not attend a required gun safety training session prior to the accidental shooting of “Rust” cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, the Santa Fe district attorney said on Tuesday, outlining its case against the actor in filings made as part of its formal charge of involuntary manslaughter.

In a 10-page probable cause filing published Tuesday, the DA said the actor and producer of “Rust” “was not present for required firearms training prior to the commencement of filming.” Prosecutors also said that Baldwin requested and was granted a gun training session on set; but according to a deposition from “Rust” armorer and fellow defendant Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, he appeared “distracted and talking on his cell phone to his family during the training.”

Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed have each been charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection to Hutchins’ death. The charges, if found guilty, come with a maximum prison sentence of 18 months.

The probable cause filing offered a glimpse into the case that prosecutors plan to make in court. The DA argued that Baldwin is guilty of acting with criminal negligence as a producer of “Rust,” claiming that it was his responsibility in such a role to ensure that gun safety protocols were upheld.

“Baldwin, by act or omission or failure to act in his position as a producer directly contributed and/or failed to mitigate reckless and dangerous actions during a very short time period,” the filing read.

In his own accounts of the incident filed by his lawyers last year, Baldwin claims that he was a producer on “Rust” for creative matters, and other producers were responsible for hiring Gutierrez-Reed as armorer and handling gun safety and other logistical duties on set.

“This decision distorts Halyna Hutchins’ tragic death and represents a terrible miscarriage of justice,” Baldwin’s attorney, Luke Nikas, said when the charges were announced. “We will fight these charges and we will win.”

TheWrap has reached out to Baldwin’s representatives for further comment.

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