Santa Fe, N.M. — In a blistering new legal filing, prosecutors have alleged that actor Alec Baldwin showed an “absolute lack of concern for safety” on the set of the film “Rust,” fostering an environment where negligence could lead to tragedy.
The filing claims that in the days before the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in October 2021, Baldwin frequently “screamed and cursed” at crew members while demanding they “work faster.” Prosecutors assert his “relentless rushing” and “lack of control of his own emotions” were major contributing factors to the on-set mishap.
“Witnesses have testified that it was this exact conduct that contributed to safety compromises on set,” the prosecutors wrote in their response to Baldwin’s motion to dismiss charges against him. They accused the actor and producer of overlooking obvious signs that the inexperienced armorer, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, was “overwhelmed” by her responsibilities.
The 24-page document paints a damning portrait of the chaotic and hurried atmosphere that allegedly pervaded the low-budget western’s filming in a remote part of New Mexico. It claims Baldwin, who was both starring in and producing the movie, prioritized expediency over prudence regarding firearm protocols.
“The combination of Hannah Gutierrez’s negligence and inexperience and Alec Baldwin’s complete lack of concern for the safety of those around him would prove deadly for Halyna Hutchins,” the prosecutors asserted.
Ms. Hutchins was fatally struck in the chest when a revolver Baldwin was rehearsing with fired a live round that was inexplicably loaded into the prop gun. The film’s director, Joel Souza, was also wounded in the incident.
In January, Baldwin pleaded not guilty to an involuntary manslaughter charge stemming from the shooting. If convicted, he could face up to 18 months in jail. Gutierrez Reed was found guilty of the same charge in March.
Baldwin’s legal team has forcefully pushed back against the prosecution, accusing authorities of unfairly maligning the 65-year-old actor and mishandling the investigation. In a March filing, they condemned the “improprieties” of the case and called it “an abuse of the system” that has left Baldwin living under a “cesspool” of accusations for over two years.
“An innocent person’s rights have been trampled to the extreme,” Baldwin’s lawyers argued as they attempted to get the charges dismissed.
Prosecutors countered those claims in their new filing, saying Baldwin has repeatedly changed his account of what transpired, going from initial shock to later asserting he did not pull the trigger. They also accused him of inappropriately attempting “to sway public opinion” through public statements after the tragedy.
The harsh back-and-forth marks a dramatic escalation in the legal battle surrounding the shocking on-set fatality. With both sides trading inflammatory allegations, the court case appears headed toward a protracted and contentious trial over who bears ultimate culpability.
The filming of “Rust,” which was halted indefinitely after the shooting, has become ensnarled in simultaneous criminal cases, civil lawsuits, labor disputes and industry-wide reverberations over safety regulations for weapons on productions. A resolution seems far from imminent as the prosecution and defense teams continue trading accusations about who was truly negligent on that fateful October day in the New Mexico desert.
