Guilty verdict against “Rust” weapons master after fatal shot

In 2021, a camerawoman died on the film set of the western “Rust” – hit by a bullet from a prop weapon that was loaded with live ammunition. Now the weapons masters have been found guilty of negligent homicide.

After Hollywood star Alec Baldwin fatally shot a camerawoman during the filming of the western film “Rust,” the production’s master gunner, Hannah Guttierez-Reed, has now been found guilty of negligent homicide. The twelve jurors in a court in Santa Fe, New Mexico, came to this verdict after deliberating for around three hours.

The sentence will be announced at a later date. The 26-year-old faces up to 18 months in prison. She appeared largely expressionless as the verdict was announced and was then immediately taken into custody, where the court said she will remain until the sentence is announced. Her legal team announced that they wanted to appeal.

Weapon loaded with live ammunition

In October 2021, camerawoman Halyna Hutchins was fatally injured on the film set of “Rust”. Director Joel Souza was hit in the shoulder by the same bullet when the shot fired from a prop gun being operated by lead actor Alec Baldwin. Gutierrez-Reed was in charge of weapons and security during the shooting. She loaded the revolver, which was then handed to Baldwin.

Prosecutor Kari Morrissey, citing photos, accused Gutierrez-Reed of unknowingly bringing live ammunition to the film set at least twelve days before the shooting and not realizing her mistake afterwards. Morrissey complained about “constant, never-ending security deficiencies” on the set and described Gutierrez-Reed’s “astonishing lack of care.”

“Accident was deliberate and foreseeable”

She failed to “ensure the safety of firearms, making a fatal accident intentional and foreseeable.” The gunsmith repeatedly failed to follow standard procedures when checking the revolvers used during shooting, Morrissey said. Every time an actor had a gun in his hand, it was “a game of Russian roulette.”

According to her lawyer, the weapon master assured that she had not loaded the weapon with live ammunition, which is generally strictly forbidden on film sets. She was made a scapegoat by the film production company and Baldwin. In addition to negligent homicide, she was accused of tampering with evidence because she made a small bag of possible narcotics disappear after the shot. She was acquitted on the last count.

Her defense argues, among other things, a report from an occupational safety authority that said there were extensive safety problems on the set that went beyond the weapons master’s responsibility.

Baldwin trial in July

Both director Souza and assistant director David Halls, who pleaded guilty to negligent handling of a weapon last year and received a suspended sentence, testified in the trial. A trial against the 65-year-old Baldwin on involuntary manslaughter charges is scheduled for July. He claims that he had no idea that there was a live cartridge in the weapon, which also went off accidentally.