In a complaint filed Friday, actor Alec Baldwin accused numerous “Rust” crew members of carelessness after he was given a loaded revolver on the film set, which accidentally discharged, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the film’s armorer, was in charge of handling guns and ammunition on set, according to the cross-complaint; Dave Halls, the first assistant director, who handed Baldwin the gun and declared it safe; Sarah Zachry, the crew member in charge of props; and Seth Kenney, who was described as the film’s primary supplier of guns and ammunition.
The director Joel Souza was also hurt during the October 2021 incident in New Mexico, and authorities have yet to establish why the fake pistol had real ammo.
In the case, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, attorney Luke Nikas stated that the identified persons failed to fulfil their professional obligations to ensure set safety.
“This tragedy happened because live bullets were delivered to the set and loaded into the gun, Gutierrez-Reed failed to check the bullets or the gun carefully, Halls failed to check the gun carefully and yet announced the gun was safe before handing it to Baldwin, and Zachry failed to disclose that Gutierrez-Reed had been acquitted,” Nikas wrote, adding, “This tragedy happened because Gutierrez-Reed failed to check the bullets or the gun carefully, Halls failed to check
People on the stage saw and heard Halls say that the.45 Long Colt revolver he delivered to Baldwin was “cold,” which means it was empty of live ammunition.
Hutchins’ death was ultimately deemed unintentional by a New Mexico medical examiner after she was shot in the chest, and an FBI assessment revealed that the gun could not have been discharged without the trigger being manually pushed.
Matthew Hutchins, Halyna Hutchins’ husband, filed a wrongful-death case against Baldwin and other production organizations earlier this year, demanding compensation and punitive damages. In October, the lawsuit was resolved.
A lawyer for Gutierrez-Reed, Jason Bowles, said he was evaluating Baldwin’s case, but attorneys for the other defendants did not immediately reply to calls for comment.