More information surrounding the shooting incident on set of Alec Baldwin’s film Rust has continued to emerge.
As the investigation into the accidental death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injury of director Joel Souza last Thursday (October 21) has continued, officials have asserted that Alec Baldwin had been handed a prop gun containing a live round. Baldwin, who fired the gun that fatally struck Hutchins and injured Souza, has been co-operating with authorities fully, though as reported by the BBC, U.S. police officials have not ruled out filing criminal charges over the incident.
Legal experts, as per the BBC, have indicated that it is unlikely Baldwin will face criminal charges, though District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies has said, “All options are on the table.”
Santa Fe Country Sherriff Adan Mendoza said during a press conference that a ‘lead projectile’ had been removed from Souza’s shoulder, a projectile it is believed caused Hutchins’ death.
The police’s investigation has also revealed that a mixture of blanks, dummy rounds and what is suspected to be ‘live rounds’ had been recovered – 500 rounds of ammunition total.
“Right now we’re going to determine how those got there, why they were there,” Mendoza said. “Because they shouldn’t have been there.”
Official court documents have revealed that assistant director Dave Halls had handed Baldwin the prop gun, indicating its safety by announcing ‘cold gun!’ on set. Along with Halls and Baldwin, the only other person to handle the weapon was armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed. Halls has admitted he failed to check all the rounds in the gun before handing it to Baldwin.
Gutierrez-Reed told authorities, according to court documents, that guns used on the production had been secured before the incident, but the ammunition had not.
Production on the film – a Western titled Rust – has been stopped while the investigation continues.
