{"id":2292289,"date":"2024-07-10T20:40:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-11T00:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/witness-testimony-begins-in-alec-baldwins-rust-shooting-trial-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-07-10T20:48:08","modified_gmt":"2024-07-11T00:48:08","slug":"witness-testimony-begins-in-alec-baldwins-rust-shooting-trial-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/witness-testimony-begins-in-alec-baldwins-rust-shooting-trial-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Witness testimony begins in Alec Baldwin\u2019s Rust shooting trial &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwitness-testimony-begins-in-alec-baldwins-rust-shooting-trial-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2292289&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article \u2064discusses the\u200c beginning of \u2064witness testimony in the involuntary\u200b manslaughter trial of \u200cactor Alec Baldwin, who fatally shot\u200d cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film \u2063&#8221;Rust&#8221; in New Mexico. The defense and prosecution began cross-examining \u2064the trial&#8217;s first witnesses, including law \u2063enforcement officers who were \u200bpresent\u2064 at the time of the incident. Baldwin claimed that \u200che believed the gun\u2063 was unloaded and checked by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/alert-lib-journo-aaron-rupar-spotted-at-wnba-game-without-a-mask\/\" title=\"ALERT: Lib Journo Aaron Rupar Spotted at WNBA Game Without a Mask\">safety experts<\/a>, while prosecutors accused him of \u200dplaying with a real gun. The trial also\u2064 featured \u200bbody \u2062camera footage and testimony from officers and other witnesses. Additionally, the article mentions\u2064 a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/clinton-lawyer-gloats-epstein-judge-approved-fbi-raid-could-ban-trump-from-re-election\/\" title=\"Clinton Lawyer Gloats: Epstein Judge Approved FBI Raid Could Ban Trump from Re-election\">court filing alleging<\/a> that Baldwin had flouted security protocols and \u200brushed crew members, as well as a public scene he made with his wife\u2063 and young child outside the courthouse.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><br \/>\n<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\"><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><a class=\"tdb-logo-a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" title=\"Washington Examiner\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-img-wrap\"><\/span><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-wrap\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-title\">Washington Examiner<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\">\n<div class=\"tdb-search-form-inner\"><input class=\"tdb-head-search-form-input\" placeholder=\" \" type=\"text\" value name=\"s\" autocomplete=\"off\"><button class=\"wpb_button wpb_btn-inverse btn tdb-head-search-form-btn\" title=\"Search\" type=\"submit\"><span>Search<\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><a class=\"tdb-logo-a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" title=\"Washington Examiner\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-img-wrap\"><\/span><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-wrap\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-title\">Washington Examiner<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Witness testimony begins in Alec Baldwin\u2019s Rust shooting trial<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-author-name-wrap\"><span class=\"tdb-author-by\">By<\/span> <a class=\"tdb-author-name\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/author\/heather-hunter\/\">Heather Hunter<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><time class=\"entry-date updated td-module-date\" datetime=\"2024-07-10T20:00:53-04:00\">July 10, 2024 8:00 pm<\/time><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1698881\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Opening statements began Wednesday in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/video-reportedly-shows-atlanta-police-not-pursuing-drive-by-shooter-targeting-terrorized-residents\/\" title=\"Video Reportedly Shows Atlanta Police Not Pursuing Drive-By Shooter Targeting Terrorized Residents\">involuntary manslaughter<\/a> trial of actor <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/alec-baldwin\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Alec Baldwin<\/a> nearly three years after he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/shooting\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>fatally shot<\/a> cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/new-mexico\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>New Mexico<\/a> set of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/film\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>film<\/a> <em>Rust<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>The defense and prosecution began cross-examination of the trial\u2019s first witnesses including law enforcement witnesses.<\/p>\n<p>The first witness cross-examined by defense attorney Alex Spiro was Santa Fe, New Mexico, officer Nicholas Lefleur, whose <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/9-year-old-girl-pepper-sprayed-during-interaction-with-rochester-police\/\" title=\"9-Year-Old Girl Pepper Sprayed During Interaction With Rochester Police\">body camera footage<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/entertainment\/live-news\/alec-baldwin-rust-shooting-trial-07-10-24\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"captured \">captured <\/a>several members of the film crew gathered around Baldwin following the incident discussing what happened to Hutchins and the director, Joel Souza.<\/p>\n<p>In the body camera footage that jurors saw on Wednesday, Baldwin was seen talking to Lefleur and admitting that he was \u201cholding the gun.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Defense attorney Alex Spiro told jurors that Baldwin believed the gun was a \u201ccold gun\u201d \u2014 one that was unloaded and checked by safety experts working on the movie. Prosecutor Erlinda Johnson disputed Baldwin\u2019s claim that he did not pull the trigger, accused him of playing \u201cmake-believe with a real gun,\u201d and called on the jurors to deliver justice for the deceased cinematographer.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"youtube-embed\" data-video_id=\"f0ONdsH_jsg\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"WATCH LIVE: Alec Baldwin 'Rust' trial\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/f0ONdsH_jsg?feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The second witness, retired Lt. Timoteo Benavidez, was one of the officers responding to the incident and secured the crime scene amid \u201croughly 200 people\u201d on the scene. Benavidez\u2019s body camera footage played in court showed his conversation with film armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed, who was visibly upset and crying while saying \u201csorry\u201d multiple times. In March, Gutierrez-Reed was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter.<\/p>\n<p>The third witness called on Wednesday was Joseph Lujan, a detective with the Santa Fe County Sheriff\u2019s Office who testified seeing doctors remove \u201ca projectile\u201d out of Souza\u2019s shoulder at the hospital.<\/p>\n<p>Baldwin was seen in court intently watching the testimony and body camera footage evidence being shown to jurors. His wife, Hilaria, was quietly seated behind him watching the proceedings.<\/p>\n<p>In June, prosecutors had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3052693\/alec-baldwin-fired-blank-rust-crew-member-before-fatal-shooting\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>made a court filing<\/a> claiming that Baldwin \u201cflouted security protocols\u201d and was allegedly engaged in \u201chorseplay with his gun.\u201d The prosecution had also claimed that he had rushed the armorer \u201cto reload and crew members to work at a faster pace.\u201d The document said that Baldwin \u201cwas inattentive during the firearms training conducted by Ms. Gutierrez and was distracted by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/alec-baldwin-fired-a-blank-round-at-a-crew-member-prior-to-fatal-movie-shooting\/\" title=\"Alec Baldwin &#039;discharged a blank round at a crew member&#039; before the deadly film set shooting\">texting\/face timing family members<\/a> and making videos for his family\u2019s enjoyment.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Actor Alec Baldwin, left, and wife Hilaria Baldwin, holding their child, arrive for jury selection in his involuntary manslaughter trial, Tuesday, July 9, 2024, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. (AP Photo\/Ross D. Franklin)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>He arrived in Santa Fe on Tuesday outside the courthouse, making a public scene with his wife and their youngest of seven children.<\/p>\n<p>Journalist Emily Miller said the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.emilypostnews.com\/p\/alec-baldwins-wife-and-crying-baby\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title='\"publicity stunt\"'>\u201cpublicity stunt\u201d<\/a> had \u201cbackfired badly\u201d when he was seen trying to get his baby to \u201ccome to daddy\u201d and his wife later handed off the baby to the nanny. When the child began \u201cscreaming and crying\u201d while Baldwin\u2019s wife walked away, the \u201cimpression of uncaring parents who used their child as a prop\u201d made a bad impression on the media outside the trial. Some legal experts <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/entertainment\/alec-baldwin-rust-shooting-trial-wife-baby-tow-attempt-strategic-move-expert-says#&#038;_intcmp=fnhpbt8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"observed\">observed<\/a> that the theatrics were an attempt to humanize Baldwin but bringing a child to court was \u201cunusual.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The Baldwins are in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/entertainment\/3029941\/alec-hilaria-baldwin-announce-reality-tv-series-coming-2025\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"middle of filming\">middle of filming<\/a> their family\u2019s new TLC reality show, <em>The Baldwins, <\/em>as he goes through the trial. Sources involved in the show <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2024\/07\/10\/us-news\/alec-baldwins-reality-show-preparing-for-possibility-he-goes-to-jail\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"reportedly\">reportedly<\/a> are planning for the possibility of a conviction of the actor.<\/p>\n<p>Baldwin has pleaded not guilty and his trial is expected to last 10 days. If convicted, the actor could face up to 18 months in prison and a $5,000 fine.<\/p>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1698881\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1698881\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><a class=\"tdb-logo-a\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" title=\"Washington Examiner\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-img-wrap\"><\/span><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-wrap\"><span class=\"tdb-logo-text-title\">Washington Examiner<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<p><\/body><\/html><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The trial of actor Alec Baldwin, who fatally shot cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film Rust, began with witness testimony and cross-examination of law enforcement witnesses. Defense attorney Alex Spiro argued that Baldwin believed the gun was unloaded and checked by safety experts, while prosecutor Erlinda Johnson accused Baldwin of playing with a real gun and called for justice for the deceased cinematographer. The trial is expected to last 10 days, and if convicted, Baldwin could face up to 18 months in prison and a $5,000 fine<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2678,"featured_media":2292290,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/AP24190817938624.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[33315,34601,32076,34602],"class_list":["post-2292289","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-alec-baldwin","tag-rust-shooting-trial","tag-washington-examiner","tag-witness-testimony"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/AP24190817938624.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2292289","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2678"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2292289"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2292289\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2292290"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2292289"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2292289"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2292289"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}