Halyna Hutchins Shot With Prop Gun - Alec Baldwin indicted & Hannah Gutierrez-Reed charged, 2021 #6

[10ofRods]

I can't remember this and can't seem to find it so maybe someone here can help. When the charges against HGR and AB were filed, were they booked and given bond conditions?

I don't think so. They appear by virtual hearing on Feb. 24, and I do remember that they'll get bond conditions then. I've seen no booking photos. I believe Alec will be permitted to have his booking occur in NY - but I hope it's not with his friends at the Suffolk County Sheriff's office - although that's probably what will happen.

 

[10ofRods]

Involuntary manslaughter charges formally filed against Alec Baldwin in 'Rust' shooting

Three people -- including star Alec Baldwin -- face charges after cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot on the set of "Rust" in 2021.

abcnews.go.com

This is the most comprehensive coverage of the process I have found, and FWIW it doesn't mention booking or bond. Other coverage says next step is a preliminary hearing held electronically on 24 Feb., when a judge decides whether to charge them. This is reported as being an alternative to calling a grand jury.

But the article does not say that the prelim is on Feb 24. It's awfully soon for a prelim. And I don't think the prelim will allow Hannah and Alec to appear virtually.

I think this is their arraignment. In NM, it may be known as First Hearing:

Judge sets first court date in Alec Baldwin, ‘Rust’ movie prosecution

SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – Actor Alec Baldwin and film armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed will face their first hearing in front of a judge later this month as prosecution moves forward in the fatal 2…

www.krqe.com

They have to hear the charges against them, in full, as a first step, I believe. I don't know how they could conduct discovery for the Prelim until the charges are formally laid.

 

[DI_Isokawa]

Alec Baldwin's first court appearance set for Feb. 24

The first appearance for Alec Baldwin, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed and David Halls has been set for Feb. 24 in the First Judicial District Court.

www.koat.com

 

[deugirtni]

Right. Two different scenarios. I was thinking of a supply chain contaminated and the source and then moving to the gun. An extra six rounds dumped in with the loose ones after delivery of the set is a form of contamination I did not consider, as is the mysterious last box of dummies allegedly delivered that day. (I still do not understand why more dummy rounds had to be ordered late in the filming.)

It is also worth noting, as your description does, that just loading a round through the loading gate does not mean it will fire the next time the hammer is retracted and the trigger pulled; several movements of the cylinder are required. This adds the uncertainty surrounding whether the sixth round Hannah loaded was the live one.

According to HGR's own lawyer, the live round was the last round loaded by HGR..... assuming nobody else screwed around with it.

At that point, Bowles says the gun went back to Gutierrez Reed, who locked it in the prop truck’s safe. After lunch, around 1 p.m., she went to retrieve it—and fix that empty sixth slot. Dummies are necessary because the ends of the revolver’s cylinder are exposed, and viewers would be able to tell if the chambers were empty. “So she cleans the cylinder and she pulls another round, a different round, out of that box and puts that round into the chamber,” Bowles says. At the same time, he says she was being urgently summoned to set over her radio.

Did she shake that last round to make sure it was a dummy? “Yes,” her attorney says. “She thought it had rattled, but at the same time, people are screaming in her earpiece, ‘Get the gun, get the gun.’ But she thought it had rattled.”

At some point, a real bullet made its way into that gun. So was that last round the one that killed Halyna Hutchins? “We don’t know for sure, because that gun was out of her eyesight and custody for 15 minutes,” Bowles says, referring to when Gutierrez Reed handed the gun over for the rehearsal moments later and left the church. “But if indeed nobody else had access to it, then yes, that would’ve been the round, the live round.”

“This Cannot Be Right”: How the Gun in Alec Baldwin’s Hands Turned the ‘Rust’ Set Deadly

 

[deugirtni]

That is all I have found as well, which is odd. Typically, a felony defendant must surrender, booked, advised of charges, bond conditions issued. Has that not happened here?

I'm not sure if this answers the question(?), but there is this:

Following the filing of charges, each defendant will be issued a summons with the charging information. Shortly after receiving the summons each defendant is required to make a “first appearance,” a procedure that is often referred to in other jurisdictions as an arraignment. That first appearance can be done virtually, and defendants can even move to have their first appearance waived. First appearance dates are set by the court, not by the District Attorney.

(It is from the DA's press release which was posted on FB) January 19, 2023 (copied from FB)

 

[PrairieWind]

I don't think so. They appear by virtual hearing on Feb. 24, and I do remember that they'll get bond conditions then. I've seen no booking photos. I believe Alec will be permitted to have his booking occur in NY - but I hope it's not with his friends at the Suffolk County Sheriff's office - although that's probably what will happen.

Thanks. that probably answers my question. That is still a bit odd, but not totally out of the ordinary. It will be interesting to see what the bond conditions are. For a felony typical bond condition is no possession of firearms, so.......

 

[Cool Cats]

Alec Baldwin ‘Rust’ Shooting Case Sees Halyna Hutchins’ Widower Added To D.A. Witness List

A week before the first court hearing in the Rust criminal case against Alec Baldwin and armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed for the fatal October 2021 shooting of Halyna Hutchins, the Santa Fe District Attorney has added a particularly poignant individual to its witness list. In a fourth amended...

www.yahoo.com

A week before the first court hearing in the Rust criminal case against Alec Baldwin and armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed for the fatal October 2021 shooting of Halyna Hutchins, the Santa Fe District Attorney has added a particularly poignant individual to its witness list.

In a fourth amended state’s witness list for preliminary hearing filed Thursday in New Mexico, D.A. Mary Carmack-Altwies now has Matthew Hutchins on the list:

(read it here) of 46 names.

 

[10ofRods]

Alec Baldwin ‘Rust’ Shooting Case Sees Halyna Hutchins’ Widower Added To D.A. Witness List

A week before the first court hearing in the Rust criminal case against Alec Baldwin and armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed for the fatal October 2021 shooting of Halyna Hutchins, the Santa Fe District Attorney has added a particularly poignant individual to its witness list. In a fourth amended...

www.yahoo.com

A week before the first court hearing in the Rust criminal case against Alec Baldwin and armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed for the fatal October 2021 shooting of Halyna Hutchins, the Santa Fe District Attorney has added a particularly poignant individual to its witness list.

In a fourth amended state’s witness list for preliminary hearing filed Thursday in New Mexico, D.A. Mary Carmack-Altwies now has Matthew Hutchins on the list:

(read it here) of 46 names.

Oh my. I bet Alec is perplexed and enraged by this turn of events. And how interesting that will be, if Hutchins decides to be on set during the resumed filming and the two of them have to work together. IMO and imagination.

I'm really curious to know what Hutchins might say.

 

[steeltowngirl]

02/24/2023 8:30 AM Judge Marlowe Sommer General Session

10:00 AM D-101-CR-2023-00039 State of New Mexico
v.
Alexander Rae Baldwin Pros Atty: Carmack-Altwies, Mary V.
First Appearance Def Atty: Leblanc, Heather M.
Comment: FIRST APPEARANCE
OUT OF CUSTODY
GOOGLE MEETS

10:15 AM D-101-CR-2023-00040 State of New Mexico
v.
Hannah Gutierrez Pros Atty: Carmack-Altwies, Mary V.
First Appearance Def Atty: Bowles, Robert Jason
Comment: FIRST APPEARANCE
OUT OF CUSTODY
GOOGLE MEETS

Division VIII Schedule - First Judicial District

Judge Anastasia R. Martin Last Updated: 07/17/2025 In-Person Hearings In-person hearings for this Division may be held at either the Santa Fe Courthouse or the Tierra Amarilla Courthouse. Please refer to your Notice of Hearing for more information about your hearing, including whether it will be...

firstdistrictcourt.nmcourts.gov

Stale Session

caselookup.nmcourts.gov

State of New Mexico v. Alexander Rae Baldwin​

CASE NUMBER	CURRENT JUDGE	FILING DATE	COURT
CASE DETAIL​
D-101-CR-202300039	Sommer, Mary Marlowe	01/31/2023	SANTA FE DISTRICT

PARTY TYPE	PARTY DESCRIPTION	PARTY #	PARTY NAME
PARTIES TO THIS CASE​
D	Defendant	1	BALDWIN ALEXANDER RAE
	ATTORNEY: NIKAS LUKE
	ATTORNEY: BASH JOHN FRANKLIN
	ATTORNEY: LEBLANC HEATHER M.
	ATTORNEY: SPIRO ALEX
P	Plaintiff	1	STATE OF NEW MEXICO
	ATTORNEY: CARMACK-ALTWIES MARY V.
	ATTORNEY: REEB ANDREA ROWLEY

PARTY	COUNT	SEQ #	STATUTE	CHARGE	CLASS	CHARGE DATE	CIT #	PLEA	DISPOSITION	DISP DATE
CRIMINAL CHARGE DETAIL​
D 1	1	1	30-2-3(B)	Involuntary Manslaughter (Unlawful Act)	F4	10/21/2022

HEARING DATE	HEARING TIME	HEARING TYPE	HEARING JUDGE	COURT	COURT ROOM
HEARINGS FOR THIS CASE​
02/24/2023	10:00 AM	First Appearance	Sommer

State v. Alexander Rae Baldwin (Closed) | New Mexico Courts

www.nmcourts.gov

 

[Cool Cats]

Why Santa Fe district attorney decided to charge Alec Baldwin over 'Rust' shooting | CNN

Actor Alec Baldwin will be charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of cinematographer  Halyna Hutchins on the set of the Western movie "Rust," as will the armorer who oversaw all weapons used in the production.

www.cnn.com

Why Santa Fe district attorney decided to charge Alec Baldwin over 'Rust' shooting​

Mary Carmack-Altwies is the district attorney for New Mexico’s First Judicial District

****** QUOTES FROM WHAT SHE SAID ******

‘An actor does not get a free pass’​

"Other actors said they always check their guns or have someone check it in front of them."

“Every person that handles a gun has a duty to make sure that if they’re going to handle that gun, point it at someone and pull the trigger, that it is not going to fire a projectile and kill someone."

“An actor does not get a free pass just because they are an actor. That is what is so important. We are saying here in New Mexico, that everyone is equal under the law.”

‘There was such a lack of safety’ on set​

“There was such a lack of safety and safety standards on that set… There were live rounds on set."

“Nobody was checking those or at least they weren’t checking them consistently. And then they somehow got loaded into a gun handed off to Alec Baldwin. He didn’t check it. He didn’t do any of the things that he was supposed to do to make sure that he was safe or that anyone around him was safe. And then he pointed the gun at Halyna Hutchins and he pulled the trigger.”

“A really fast and loose set.”

“Nobody was doing their job.”

‘Accident doesn’t mean that it’s not criminal’​

“Just because it’s an accident doesn’t mean that it’s not criminal.”

“Our involuntary manslaughter statute covers unintentional killings."

“Unintentional that means they didn’t mean to do it. They didn’t have the intent to kill. But it happened anyway, and it happened because of more than mere negligence… They didn’t exercise due caution or circumspection and that’s what happened here.”

"There is more than enough evidence to support the charges and bring the case to trial."

‘The trigger had to have been pulled’​

“The FBI lab is one of the best in the world, and we absolutely believe that the trigger had to have been pulled in order for that gun to go off.”

Baldwin faces culpability as actor and producer​

“He was the actor that pulled the trigger so certainly he’s charged as an actor but also as a producer."

“He also had a duty to make sure that the set was safe and we know from our investigation that there had been accidental misfires prior to this.”

"Investigators discovered there were people complaining about safety on set. Baldwin, she added, should have been aware that safety was an issue … And then, as an actor that day, he should have checked that gun, checked those projectiles.”

How live rounds got on set is ‘a red herring’​

"Prosecutors might never know how live rounds made it onto the movie set, and I do believe that’s a bit of a red herring. The point is live rounds were there and they weren’t checked. They should have been caught.”

“In New Mexico, we want you to come here, we want you to film movies but we want you to do it safely. And we certainly want to get justice for anyone that is a victim… We want to get justice for Halyna Hutchins.”

 

[Marantz4250b]

Why Santa Fe district attorney decided to charge Alec Baldwin over 'Rust' shooting | CNN

Actor Alec Baldwin will be charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of cinematographer  Halyna Hutchins on the set of the Western movie "Rust," as will the armorer who oversaw all weapons used in the production.

www.cnn.com

Why Santa Fe district attorney decided to charge Alec Baldwin over 'Rust' shooting​

View attachment 404150
Mary Carmack-Altwies is the district attorney for New Mexico’s First Judicial District

****** QUOTES FROM WHAT SHE SAID ******

‘An actor does not get a free pass’​

"Other actors said they always check their guns or have someone check it in front of them."

“Every person that handles a gun has a duty to make sure that if they’re going to handle that gun, point it at someone and pull the trigger, that it is not going to fire a projectile and kill someone."

“An actor does not get a free pass just because they are an actor. That is what is so important. We are saying here in New Mexico, that everyone is equal under the law.”

‘There was such a lack of safety’ on set​

“There was such a lack of safety and safety standards on that set… There were live rounds on set."

“Nobody was checking those or at least they weren’t checking them consistently. And then they somehow got loaded into a gun handed off to Alec Baldwin. He didn’t check it. He didn’t do any of the things that he was supposed to do to make sure that he was safe or that anyone around him was safe. And then he pointed the gun at Halyna Hutchins and he pulled the trigger.”

“A really fast and loose set.”

“Nobody was doing their job.”

‘Accident doesn’t mean that it’s not criminal’​

“Just because it’s an accident doesn’t mean that it’s not criminal.”

“Our involuntary manslaughter statute covers unintentional killings."

“Unintentional that means they didn’t mean to do it. They didn’t have the intent to kill. But it happened anyway, and it happened because of more than mere negligence… They didn’t exercise due caution or circumspection and that’s what happened here.”

"There is more than enough evidence to support the charges and bring the case to trial."

‘The trigger had to have been pulled’​

“The FBI lab is one of the best in the world, and we absolutely believe that the trigger had to have been pulled in order for that gun to go off.”

Baldwin faces culpability as actor and producer​

“He was the actor that pulled the trigger so certainly he’s charged as an actor but also as a producer."

“He also had a duty to make sure that the set was safe and we know from our investigation that there had been accidental misfires prior to this.”

"Investigators discovered there were people complaining about safety on set. Baldwin, she added, should have been aware that safety was an issue … And then, as an actor that day, he should have checked that gun, checked those projectiles.”

How live rounds got on set is ‘a red herring’​

"Prosecutors might never know how live rounds made it onto the movie set, and I do believe that’s a bit of a red herring. The point is live rounds were there and they weren’t checked. They should have been caught.”

“In New Mexico, we want you to come here, we want you to film movies but we want you to do it safely. And we certainly want to get justice for anyone that is a victim… We want to get justice for Halyna Hutchins.”

I agree with pretty much everything the DA has said here; she is 100% correct in saying that someone doesn't get a "free pass" as regards firearms safety just because they are an actor.

I can only speak from the point of view of UK law but there is a legal doctrine called a "duty of care" - it is ridiculous, imo, to suggest that one specific profession is allowed to exercise a lower duty of care towards those around them, and to those they employ, simply because it makes their job a tiny bit easier.

She is also right on the money as regards the origin of the live rounds - it's a total red herring. Its irrelevant where they came from. The whole idea of checking the guns - which they didn't do - is precisely to make sure that no live rounds are in them! You should always expect live rounds to be there. If it was an impossibility for them to be there then there would be no need for a protocol of checking in the first place.

Whether the police know where the live rounds came from or not is not relevant to the charges. It is only potentially relevant if they are pursuing the line that they were put there intentionally in order to cause an accident and there has never been evidence to suggest that theory.

 

[ilovewings]

Oh my. I bet Alec is perplexed and enraged by this turn of events. And how interesting that will be, if Hutchins decides to be on set during the resumed filming and the two of them have to work together. IMO and imagination.

I'm really curious to know what Hutchins might say.

I am totally repulsed that they are going to resume filming ---

 

[Marantz4250b]

I am totally repulsed that they are going to resume filming ---

I agree wholeheartedly!

 

[ilovewings]

I agree wholeheartedly!

What are they thinking?, including the husband of the deceased lady- how can he go back to filming when his wife died during that first filming? The rationale eludes me, it really does. You would think they would all want to put this horror behind them, as much as is humanly possible to do so.
.

 

[sds71]

The altered charges, which were filed on Friday, also apply to Hannah Gutierrez-Reed

‘Rust’ Prosecutors Downgrade Alec Baldwin’s Manslaughter Charges (Published 2023)

The actor’s lawyers had argued that a firearm law included by the prosecutors was not in effect at the time of the fatal shooting. It would have carried a mandatory five-year sentence.

www.nytimes.com

DA drops gun enhancement charge against Alec Baldwin in 'Rust' shooting

The Santa Fe District Attorney's Office announced it is dropping the gun enhancement charge against Alec Baldwin in the "Rust" shooting.

abcnews.go.com

 

[Chelly]

The altered charges, which were filed on Friday, also apply to Hannah Gutierrez-Reed

‘Rust’ Prosecutors Downgrade Alec Baldwin’s Manslaughter Charges (Published 2023)

The actor’s lawyers had argued that a firearm law included by the prosecutors was not in effect at the time of the fatal shooting. It would have carried a mandatory five-year sentence.

www.nytimes.com

DA drops gun enhancement charge against Alec Baldwin in 'Rust' shooting

The Santa Fe District Attorney's Office announced it is dropping the gun enhancement charge against Alec Baldwin in the "Rust" shooting.

abcnews.go.com

Wow! Huge win for the defense. Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed are surely breathing easier.

 

[Ceska]

My reply posted twice. Deleted.

 

[Ceska]

What are they thinking?, including the husband of the deceased lady- how can he go back to filming when his wife died during that first filming? The rationale eludes me, it really does. You would think they would all want to put this horror behind them, as much as is humanly possible to do so.

Halyna's husband wants to move forward with the film, her husband is the producer. Maybe it helps him to heal.

Oh my. I bet Alec is perplexed and enraged by this turn of events. And how interesting that will be, if Hutchins decides to be on set during the resumed filming and the two of them have to work together. IMO and imagination.

I'm really curious to know what Hutchins might say.

Why wouldn't Hutchins be on the set tho, he is the producer.

Alec Baldwin's "Rust" to resume filming, Halyna Hutchins' husband producing

The filming is set to resume following a shooting accident in October 2021, which resulted in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set.

www.newsweek.com

 

[Ceska]

"The Santa Fe district attorney dropped the gun enhancement charge after Baldwin's attorney pointed out that the law went into effect months after the shooting.".

Baldwin has charges downgraded in fatal 'Rust' shooting

Alec Baldwin is no longer facing up to five years in prison for involuntary manslaughter for the shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on a movie set in New Mexico.

www.abcactionnews.com

 

[SteveS]

My point was that, the applicable standard at the time for increasing the basic sentence was brandishing - and since AB wasn't brandishing (ie, acting with "intent to intimidate or injure"), the increase (of any amount) was inapplicable.

Yes, it said 3 (not 5) was the addition for brandishing. I didn't bother to look at that closely, since an increase of any amount would be inapplicable to AB case.

Assuming we aren't missing something, and I don't see what that would be, then ...

My guess is that this occurred because LE did it inadvertently, and will say, "Oops, our mistake" and not object to the modification requested by the defense motion. There was nothing to be gained for them here to have used an inapplicable section of law as part of the charge.

As discussed in this ^ post, the DA clearly made a mistake, because the actual text of the law in effect at the time of the shooting (passed in 2020, effective 2021) specified "brandished" a firearm -- AND it had replaced prior law that said "used." While that may not have been the intent of the change passed in 2020, it was the law on the books in 2021, until they went back with new wording (that went into effect in 2022) saying both "brandished" and "used." I think the lawmakers made a mistake, and the DA followed what was the intent of the law (but not it's actual wording).

In the Feb 10 motion, the defense said (accurately): "The prosecutors committed a basic legal error by charging Mr. Baldwin under a version of the firearm-enhancement statute that did not exist on the date of the accident."

The defense caught the mistake, and now the DA has backed down, as they must.

However, it's interesting how the DA has tried to spin this development. Rather saying saying, "Oops, we made a mistake in which statute we have used, so we are taking the 5 year enhancement off the table and our apologies," they have tried to spin this a different way in which they cast aspersions at the defense for making the DA stick to the law (which to me, is classless). Their statement:

"In order to avoid further litigious distractions by Mr. Baldwin and his attorneys, the District Attorney and the special prosecutor have removed the firearm enhancement to the involuntary manslaughter charges in the death of Halyna Hutchins on the 'Rust' film set. The prosecution's priority is securing justice, not securing billable hours for big-city attorneys."

Litigious distractions? That's BS - the DA had illegally charged AB for a crime that did not exist, and defense forced them to stop. Hardly a distraction, if you are the one who the govt is trying to imprison illegally.

The DA continued taking pot-shots, even though this was their own doing. Further BS, trying to label this an "attempt to distract" rather than the defense cleaning up the DA's blunder, followed by ad hominem attacks and self-serving pomposity.

""Another day, another motion from Alec Baldwin and his attorneys in an attempt to distract from the gross negligence and complete disregard for safety on the 'Rust' film set that led to Halyna Hutchins' death. In accordance with good legal practice, the District Attorney and the special prosecutor will review all motions -- even those given to the media before being served to the DA. However, the DA's and the special prosecutor's focus will always remain on ensuring that justice is served and that everyone -- even celebrities with fancy attorneys -- is held accountable under the law."

Very disappointing behavior by the DA imo.

DA drops gun enhancement charge against Alec Baldwin in 'Rust' shooting

The Santa Fe District Attorney's Office announced it is dropping the gun enhancement charge against Alec Baldwin in the "Rust" shooting.

abcnews.go.com