Trial set for 2024 in fatal shooting of cinematographer by Alec Baldwin’s movie armorer.
2024 Trial Date Set for Movie Armorer in Alec Baldwin Shooting Case
SANTA FE, N.M.—A New Mexico judge has set a 2024 starting date for the trial of movie armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer by actor Alec Baldwin during a rehearsal on the set of a Western film.
State district court Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer on Monday scheduled the trial to run from Feb. 21 through March 6 in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The first day begins with jury selection.
Ms. Gutierrez-Reed has pleaded not guilty to charges of involuntary manslaughter and evidence tampering in the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal on the set of “Rust” on Oct. 21, 2021.
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An attorney for Ms. Gutierrez-Reed has described the fatal shooting as a tragic accident and says the film’s armorer committed no crime. Ms. Gutierrez-Reed is currently the sole criminal defendant.
Prosecutors are weighing whether to refile a charge against Mr. Baldwin after receiving a new analysis of the gun fired at Hutchins. Special prosecutors dismissed an involuntary manslaughter charge against Mr. Baldwin in April, saying they were informed the gun might have been modified before the shooting and malfunctioned.
Mr. Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer—but not the trigger—and the gun fired, fatally wounding Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza.
In March, “Rust” assistant director and safety coordinator David Halls pleaded no contest to a conviction for unsafe handling of a firearm and received a suspended sentence of six months of probation. He agreed to cooperate in the investigation of the shooting.
Defense attorneys said they plan to present evidence that Ms. Gutierrez-Reed asked Mr. Halls to call her back into rehearsal if Mr. Baldwin planned to use the gun. They say that didn’t happen before Hutchins was shot.
The filming of “Rust” resumed this year in Montana, under an agreement with the cinematographer’s widower, Matthew Hutchins, that made him an executive producer.
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