Alec Baldwin and armorer to be charged with involuntary manslaughter after fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins on the set of ‘Rust’

By CNN

Published January 19, 2023 10:02 AM

CNN

By Travis Caldwell and Paul Vercammen, CNN

Alec Baldwin, the actor who fatally shot cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal for the Western movie “Rust” in 2021, and the film’s armorer will be charged with involuntary manslaughter, prosecutors said Thursday.

Baldwin has maintained he was not aware the gun he fired on set contained a live round.

Baldwin and armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed will each be charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter, prosecutors said.

The shooting has resulted in a whirlwind of finger-pointing and allegations of negligence from those involved.

Hutchins was struck and killed by a live round of ammunition fired from a prop gun being held by Baldwin, who maintains he did not pull the gun’s trigger. Director Joel Souza was also injured.

In the summary of the postmortem investigation into Hutchins’ death — which was formally signed by the New Mexico chief medical investigator — the cause of death is listed as “gunshot wound of chest,” and the manner of death is listed as an “accident.”

“Review of available law enforcement reports showed no compelling demonstration that the firearm was intentionally loaded with live ammunition on set. Based on all available information, including the absence of obvious intent to cause harm or death, the manner of death is best classified as accident,” the report concluded.

An FBI forensics report said the weapon could not be fired during FBI testing of its normal functioning without pulling the trigger while the gun was cocked. The report also noted the gun eventually malfunctioned during testing after internal parts fractured, which caused the gun to go off in the cocked position without pulling the trigger.

In an interview with CNN in August, Baldwin placed responsibility for the tragedy on Gutierrez-Reed, who served as the armorer and props assistant on the film, and assistant director Dave Halls, who handed him the gun.

Halls signed a plea agreement “for the charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon,” the district attorney’s office announced in its statement Thursday. Prosecutors said the terms of that deal include six months of probation.

Charges will not be filed against film director Joel Souza, the statement says.

CNN has reached out to Baldwin and Gutierrez Reed for comment and will reach out to Halls and Souza.

On Thursday, Halls’ attorney Lisa Tarraco released a statement in defense of her client, who does not face charges in connection with the tragedy.

“Absent no charges at all, this is the best outcome for Mr. Halls and the case,” Tarraco said. “He can now put this matter behind him and allow the focus of this tragedy to be on the shooting victims and changing the industry so this type of accident will never happen again. “

In November, Baldwin filed suit against Gutierrez Reed and Halls and other individuals associated with the film, according to a cross-complaint obtained by CNN.

Through their respective attorneys, both Gutierrez Reed and Halls maintained they were not at fault and accused Baldwin of deflecting blame onto others. Gutierrez Reed also sued the movie’s gun and ammunition supplier and its founder — who deny wrongdoing — and alleged a cache of dummy ammunition was sold with live rounds mixed in.

In October, Hutchins’ family reached an undisclosed settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit filed against Baldwin and others involved in producing the film.

Matthew Hutchins, widower of Halyna Hutchins, described her death as a “terrible accident” in a statement at the time of the settlement. Production on “Rust” was to resume this month with Matthew Hutchins joining as an executive producer on the film as part of the agreement.

CNN’s Chloe Melas, Megan Thomas, Kevin Flower and Josh Campbell contributed to this report.