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

[DI_Isokawa]

Is the Embattled Young ‘Rust’ Armorer Getting a Fair Shot?

As the first criminal trial over the film’s tragic shooting gets underway, prosecutors look to paint Hannah Gutierrez-Reed as a druggie whose mistakes led to calamity. Defenders say she’s a scapegoat for penny-pinching producers and a blundering investigation. New details reveal both may be true.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

 

[Marantz4250b]

Is the Embattled Young ‘Rust’ Armorer Getting a Fair Shot?

As the first criminal trial over the film’s tragic shooting gets underway, prosecutors look to paint Hannah Gutierrez-Reed as a druggie whose mistakes led to calamity. Defenders say she’s a scapegoat for penny-pinching producers and a blundering investigation. New details reveal both may be true.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

I'm just reading though that article; this is the first time I've heard Thell Reed referred to as her stepfather. I always thought he was her actual father. Not that it makes much difference, I guess.

 

[Cool Cats]

Very long detailed article about
Hannah Gutierrez-Reed

(Posted before I saw it was already posted)

Is the Embattled Young ‘Rust’ Armorer Getting a Fair Shot?

On Oct. 21, 2021, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, then 24, arrived at the Bonanza Creek Ranch just south of Santa Fe, New Mexico, an hour or so before sunrise and reported to her job as the armorer and props assistant on the set of the low-budget indie Western Rust. She took a COVID test, swung by the...

news.yahoo.com

 

[ch_13]

I'm just reading though that article; this is the first time I've heard Thell Reed referred to as her stepfather. I always thought he was her actual father. Not that it makes much difference, I guess.

A few other interesting details that I don't think we previously knew:

• HGR's attorney is representing her pro bono.
• The production originally budgeted for two armorers to handle all the guns before it was cut down to just a single part-time position.
• The prosecutors believe that live rounds may have been on set on at least four different days.
• The prosecutors claim that HGR admitted to bringing a box of dummy rounds on set and they believe the live rounds were mixed in with those.
• The civil lawsuit that HGR filed against the props house has been dropped.

IMO, it's a very worthwhile read, especially for those who started following the case after AB's re-indictment and may not be familiar with all the ins-and-outs.

 

[al66pine]

Gutierrez-Reed Background. (edit. corrected name)

I'm just reading though that article; this is the first time I've heard Thell Reed referred to as her stepfather. I always thought he was her actual father. Not that it makes much difference, I guess.

@Marantz4250b Agreeing, likely does not make much difference.

IIRC, MSM reports refer to her as "Gutierrez-Reed" which may indicate
she was legally adopted by Thell Reed, in which case, legally speaking he is her father. Or not adopted, hard to say.

Regardless, Threll Reed was present in Hannah's life, starting as early as AGE 11, when she ran around on a set where Threll was working.*
So some influence beginning in middle school age or earlier.

Interesting & new to me from link, but perhaps not to others here.
She was active in her high school's theater productions.
"As Gutierrez-Reed got older, Thell began to teach her about guns and bring her to more of his sets, this time to work instead of play."
"In 2020, Gutierrez-Reed graduated from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff as a film major. A dean’s list student, she was taking courses in lighting design and cinematography and working on a documentary about a watershed project intended to reduce wildfires in the region."

_____________________________
"When Gutierrez-Reed was 11, Thell took her out of school so she could visit him on the New Mexico set of James Mangold’s 2007 Western 3:10 to Yuma. She ran around the location — the same Bonanza Creek Ranch where Rust would film 15 years later — and held up the craft services tent with plastic guns, shouting, “Give me your pistachios!”

Is the Embattled Young ‘Rust’ Armorer Getting a Fair Shot?

As the first criminal trial over the film’s tragic shooting gets underway, prosecutors look to paint Hannah Gutierrez-Reed as a druggie whose mistakes led to calamity. Defenders say she’s a scapegoat for penny-pinching producers and a blundering investigation. New details reveal both may be true.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

 

[Cool Cats]

‘Rust’ Trial to Start Next Week, as Judge Rejects Last-Minute Bid to Dismiss Case

The trial of “Rust” armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed will begin as planned next week, as a Santa Fe judge on Wednesday rejected a last-minute bid to throw out the case. Gutierrez Reed’s lawyer, Jason Bowles, had argued that the case was irreparably tainted when the state turned over hundreds of...

news.yahoo.com

The trial of “Rust” armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed will begin as planned next week, as a Santa Fe judge on Wednesday rejected a last-minute bid to throw out the case.

Gutierrez Reed’s lawyer, Jason Bowles, had argued that the case was irreparably tainted when the state turned over hundreds of attorney-client text messages to a key witness. But Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer refused to dismiss the case, finding that the disclosure was not prejudicial to the defense.

 

[Cool Cats]

'Rust' movie armorer's alleged drug use to be included at trial

Armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed faces 18 months in prison if convicted of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of 'Rust' in Oct. 2021.

news.yahoo.com

A New Mexico judge ruled Wednesday that alleged drug use by "Rust" movie armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed during off-hours could be introduced as evidence during her upcoming trial on involuntary manslaughter charges in the death of the film's cinematographer.

Special prosecutors plan to tell jurors that Gutierrez-Reed, 26, used cocaine, marijuana and alcohol when she was not working and that she was probably hungover on Oct. 21, 2021, when she loaded a live bullet into actor into Alec Baldwin's revolver.

In her texts Gutierrez-Reed alluded to drug use during her off-hours while the movie was in production outside Santa Fe — including the night before the fatal shooting.

 

[Slick762]

I watched the pretrial motions hearing today. Came away with a few thoughts.
1- HGR has a bad lawyer. The protected texts being shared because the lawyers screwed up the paperwork. And a criminal defense lawyer should have known better than to think a call or text with a individual detective was going to be legally sufficient instead of properly filling out a signed consent form for the cell dump.
2- He comes across as kinda of scummy and trying to game things. I don't believe for a minute that he was unable for over a year to find a movie armorer to be a defense expert witness and was only able to find one just before trial when the state couldn't respond. Thell Reed could have called a hundred different people to testify as an expert.
3- Apparently there was a chemical analysis that didn't match the powder from the live rounds with what the prop company uses to make ammo.
4- The state seems pretty confident that they can connect the dots between HGR and the live rounds. And given the lawsuit HGR tried to hit him with to blame him for the live rounds and the protected texts being shared with the prop company owner, he's going to be out for blood when he gets on the stand.

I'm wondering what the defense strategy is going to be. If I had to bet, I'd say 50/50 blame the prop company vs blame the on set prop guy who got immunity and play hard how the cops screwed up the initial investigation.

 

[Cool Cats]

The amount of stupidity that led up to the Rust shooting is depressing and mind-boggling​

The amount of stupidity that led up to the Rust shooting is depressing and mind-boggling

A photograph of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, who died on the set of Rust in October of 2021Photo: PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty ImagesEarlier today, a New Mexico court shut down a request from the attorneys for Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who had been asking that the case against her—i.e., the...

news.yahoo.com

 

[Betty P]

The amount of stupidity that led up to the Rust shooting is depressing and mind-boggling​

The amount of stupidity that led up to the Rust shooting is depressing and mind-boggling

A photograph of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, who died on the set of Rust in October of 2021Photo: PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty ImagesEarlier today, a New Mexico court shut down a request from the attorneys for Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who had been asking that the case against her—i.e., the...

news.yahoo.com

It’s still disappointing that the Asst Director got such a generous plea deal. He seemed to be one of the more influential people on set who was responsible for so much bad management in the interest of cutting costs.

 

[Slick762]

It’s still disappointing that the Asst Director got such a generous plea deal. He seemed to be one of the more influential people on set who was responsible for so much bad management in the interest of cutting costs.

I can't remember offhand. Was it the asst dr or the prop master that threw out evidence? Not

 

[Marantz4250b]

Is it today that HGR's trial starts?

 

[Cool Cats]

Is it today that HGR's trial starts?

Jury selection starts Wednesday.

I am glad about the judge allowing the OSHA report.

In addition to the drug charges, special prosecutor Kari Morrissey asked a judge to exclude a report from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which blamed the production company for relaxed safety standards on set. Hannah Gutierrez-Reed's legal team is hoping to use the report during the trial in order to redirect blame from the armorer to the production company. In the end, Judge Summer decided that the OSHA report would be allowed into evidence during the trial.

MSN

 

[legalmomma]

RUST - A Review - Shooting On The Set Of Alec Baldwin Movie​

LIVE now...a review of the case, reenactment of the shooting, bodycam footage and more

 

[Luna20]

I watched the pretrial motions hearing today. Came away with a few thoughts.
1- HGR has a bad lawyer. The protected texts being shared because the lawyers screwed up the paperwork. And a criminal defense lawyer should have known better than to think a call or text with a individual detective was going to be legally sufficient instead of properly filling out a signed consent form for the cell dump.
2- He comes across as kinda of scummy and trying to game things. I don't believe for a minute that he was unable for over a year to find a movie armorer to be a defense expert witness and was only able to find one just before trial when the state couldn't respond. Thell Reed could have called a hundred different people to testify as an expert.
3- Apparently there was a chemical analysis that didn't match the powder from the live rounds with what the prop company uses to make ammo.
4- The state seems pretty confident that they can connect the dots between HGR and the live rounds. And given the lawsuit HGR tried to hit him with to blame him for the live rounds and the protected texts being shared with the prop company owner, he's going to be out for blood when he gets on the stand.

I'm wondering what the defense strategy is going to be. If I had to bet, I'd say 50/50 blame the prop company vs blame the on set prop guy who got immunity and play hard how the cops screwed up the initial investigation.

In number 4 who are you referring to as ‘him being on the stand’?

 

[Slick762]

The owner of the prop company that provided the guns and blank and dummy ammo, PDQ arms, Seth Kenney.
HGR publicly blamed that company and sued the owner, claiming that they mixed live rounds with the dummy ammo. But it's come out that HGR asked the owner of PDQ about shooting live ammo through the prop guns and was told not to. And supposedly forensic tests excluded the live ammo found on set from anything possessed by PDQ. The lawsuit was either dismissed or dropped when the owner of PDQ did a FOIA for documents related to the criminal case and was accidentally sent HRGs full cell phone dump. Which contained texts between her and her lawyers and allegedly contains texts between her and her dad where he tells her to 'find those rounds' or words to that effect.

And the owner of PDQ is a prosecution witness who is apparently prepared to testify that HGR told him that she bought live ammo of the same caliber to shoot from her personally owned gun. From what I've read, Seth Kenneys testimony will be that HGR asked him if she could shoot live ammo with the prop guns and after being told no, responded that she bought some live ammo and owned a pistol of the same caliber that she was going to use it in.
Which begs the question, if you have your own pistol, why ask if you can use one of the same model and caliber rented from a prop company for nonwork live fire?

 

[Cool Cats]

'Rust' armorer Hannah Gutierrez's trial set to begin: What to know

More than two years after "Rust" cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot on set, the film's armorer is set to go on trial in the high-profile case.

abcnews.go.com

Jury selection is set to begin today.

One of the charges alleges that negligent use of a deadly weapon led to Hutchins' death, while the other alleges there was negligence "without due caution or circumspection." Both are punishable by up to 18 months in jail if convicted.

Prosecutors will likely present different theories as to what the wrongful underlying act was and leave the jury to decide if any one of those led to Hutchins' death.

Was it being grossly negligent in the storage of shells? Was it drug use that caused someone to put something in the wrong place? Was it a lack of experience or supervision? It's really sort of what the theory of the underlying action is.

 

[Slick762]

'Rust' armorer Hannah Gutierrez's trial set to begin: What to know

More than two years after "Rust" cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot on set, the film's armorer is set to go on trial in the high-profile case.

abcnews.go.com

Jury selection is set to begin today.

One of the charges alleges that negligent use of a deadly weapon led to Hutchins' death, while the other alleges there was negligence "without due caution or circumspection." Both are punishable by up to 18 months in jail if convicted.

Prosecutors will likely present different theories as to what the wrongful underlying act was and leave the jury to decide if any one of those led to Hutchins' death.

Was it being grossly negligent in the storage of shells? Was it drug use that caused someone to put something in the wrong place? Was it a lack of experience or supervision? It's really sort of what the theory of the underlying action is.

I hate when they double charge like that and, IMO, that should be illegal.

 

[al66pine]

Invol. Manslaughter Charges. Two Counts, in the Alternative.

I hate when they double charge like that and, IMO, that should be illegal.

@Slick762
The TWO charges stem from different actions that the st. alleges HGR committed in ONE (series of) event in the filming.
I don't recall enough detail to break down detailed actions ATM.
Yes, some ppl think charges in the alternative should be "illegal" but it isn't.

IIRC, both counts stem from NM Statute below, paragraph B.*
"Manslaughter is the unlawful killing of a human being without malice....
"A. Voluntary manslaughter consists of...
"B. Involuntary manslaughter consists of manslaughter committed in the commission of an unlawful act not amounting to felony, or in the commission of a lawful act which might produce death in an unlawful manner or without due caution and circumspection.
"Whoever commits involuntary manslaughter is guilty of a fourth degree felony." (sbm)

2021 New Mexico Statutes :: Chapter 30 - Criminal Offenses :: Article 2 - Homicide :: Section 30-2-3 - Manslaughter.

Justia Free Databases of U.S. Laws, Codes & Statutes

law.justia.com

From article link:
"Gutierrez was charged with two felony counts of involuntary manslaughter in the alternative, and it will be up to a jury to decide which charge, if any, applied. One of the charges alleges that negligent use of a deadly weapon led to Hutchins' death, while the other alleges there was negligence "without due caution or circumspection." Both are punishable by up to 18 months in jail if convicted."
^ Feb 21. 'Rust' armorer Hannah Gutierrez's trial set to begin: What to know

 

[Slick762]

Invol. Manslaughter Charges. Two Counts, in the Alternative.

@Slick762
The TWO charges stem from different actions that the st. alleges HGR committed in ONE (series of) event in the filming.
I don't recall enough detail to break down detailed actions ATM.
Yes, some ppl think charges in the alternative should be "illegal" but it isn't.

IIRC, both counts stem from NM Statute below, paragraph B.*
"Manslaughter is the unlawful killing of a human being without malice....
"A. Voluntary manslaughter consists of...
"B. Involuntary manslaughter consists of manslaughter committed in the commission of an unlawful act not amounting to felony, or in the commission of a lawful act which might produce death in an unlawful manner or without due caution and circumspection.
"Whoever commits involuntary manslaughter is guilty of a fourth degree felony." (sbm)

2021 New Mexico Statutes :: Chapter 30 - Criminal Offenses :: Article 2 - Homicide :: Section 30-2-3 - Manslaughter.

Justia Free Databases of U.S. Laws, Codes & Statutes

law.justia.com

From article link:
"Gutierrez was charged with two felony counts of involuntary manslaughter in the alternative, and it will be up to a jury to decide which charge, if any, applied. One of the charges alleges that negligent use of a deadly weapon led to Hutchins' death, while the other alleges there was negligence "without due caution or circumspection." Both are punishable by up to 18 months in jail if convicted."
^ Feb 21. 'Rust' armorer Hannah Gutierrez's trial set to begin: What to know

IMO, that basically gives the state 2 chances to convict. It reminds of the ending of Clue where Tim Curry is running around "How it could have happened", "How about this?"

Don't get me wrong, I think there was criminal level negligence commuted by multiple people. I just think the cops really screwed up the initial investigation and now the lawyers are essentially, IMO, turning what should be a guilty/vote guilty into a multiple choice. And it smells like a 5th amendment violation.
"nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb"

The state is essentially charging twice for one act and arguing 2 different theories simultaneously. It might be legal, but it's not right. IMO