Rust gunsmith Hannah Gutierrez-Reed has been seen arriving at court as a jury was being selected for her trial over the 2021 death of a cinematographer who was shot by Alec Baldwin.
Halyna Hutchins died in 2021 after Gutiérrez-Reed mistakenly loaded a live round into a reproduction of a .45 Colt revolver that Baldwin was rehearsing with on a movie set outside Santa Fe, New Mexico.
The revolver Baldwin was holding fired the bullet that killed Hutchins. He said he had accidentally killed Hutchins and denies pulling the trigger.
Gutierrez-Reed and Baldwin face a charge of involuntary manslaughter. In addition to involuntary manslaughter, Gutiérrez-Reed is also on trial for tampering with evidence.
He has pleaded not guilty and claims he is not directly guilty of Hutchins’ death. If he is convicted, Gutierrez-Reed could be sentenced to 18 months in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Rust gunsmith Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was seen arriving at court as a jury was being selected for her trial in the 2021 death of a cinematographer who was shot by Alec Baldwin.
Gutierrez-Reed, right, arrives at the First Judicial District Court in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, for the start of his trial on charges of involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence.
The revolver Baldwin was holding fired the bullet that killed Hutchins. He said he had accidentally killed Hutchins and denies pulling the trigger.
Baldwin, lead actor and co-producer of the western film ‘Rust,’ was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins (pictured) during a rehearsal outside Santa Fe in October 2021 when the gun went off and killed her.
Twelve jurors and four alternates were sworn in for the trial that begins Feb. 22.
Of the 12 jurors selected, seven are men and five are women. All four alternate jurors are men, court spokesman Barry Massey said.
Jurors were chosen from a group of 70 Santa Fe area residents, including non-English speakers, a welder, a teacher, a graduate student and a mother who supports six children.
Prosecutors had asked potential jurors about their exposure to intense media coverage and social media chatter about the case.
More than 40 people appear as witnesses for the trial that will last until March 6.
Gutierrez-Reed was responsible for storing, maintaining and handling firearms and ammunition on set and training cast members who would handle firearms, according to state workplace safety regulators.
Baldwin is seen in the parking lot outside the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office.
The gun Baldwin used to shoot Hutchins was supplied by gunsmith Hannah Gutiérrez-Reed (pictured)
On February 1, Baldwin was seen looking somber while walking the streets of New York City, a day after he pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter.
Court documents filed Jan. 31 show Baldwin pleaded not guilty in state District Court in Santa Fe, waiving an arraignment that had been scheduled to be held remotely via video conference.
A grand jury in Santa Fe indicted Baldwin in January after prosecutors received a new analysis of that weapon, renewing a charge that prosecutors originally filed and then dismissed in April 2023.
Baldwin faces up to 18 months in prison if convicted.
His lawyers called the accusation “wrong” and pressed for the court proceedings to be expedited to “minimize public defamation and suspicion” against the actor.
Baldwin remains free pending trial under conditions that include not possessing firearms, consuming alcohol or leaving the country.
The sour-faced actor, 65, wore gray pants with a fleece-lined jacket and glasses as he strolled alone in Manhattan.
The gun Baldwin was holding killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in the 2021-set film Rust. Her lawyers have now pushed for a quick trial to “minimize public suspicion and defamation.”
Hutchins’ shooting death has led to a series of civil lawsuits, including wrongful death claims filed by members of the Hutchins family, centered on accusations that Baldwin and the producers of ‘Rust’ were lax with safety standards. Baldwin and other defendants have disputed those allegations.
David Halls, deputy director and security coordinator of ‘Rust’ pleaded no contest to unsafe handling of a firearm last March and received a suspended sentence of six months’ probation. He agreed to cooperate in the investigation of the fatal shooting.
Rust Movie Productions has already paid a $100,000 fine to the state following a scathing narrative of safety failures in violation of industry standard protocols.
The report included testimony that production managers took limited or no action to fix two glitches on the set before Hutchins was shot.
The industry-wide guidance that applied to ‘Rust’ says to “treat all firearms as if they were loaded.”
A trial date for Baldwin has not yet been set.