Alec Baldwin's manslaughter trial for the 2021 fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the movie set of Rust is set for July 10, a New Mexico judge has ruled.
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Hollywood has little recorded history of an actor being held criminally responsible for a shooting death during filming.
Hutchins died when the revolver Baldwin was holding fired a live round that also wounded director Joel Souza.
Rust armourer Hannah Gutierrez is currently standing trial for allegedly bringing the live round on set and failing to detect it. She told police she loaded it into Baldwin's gun, mistaking it for a dummy round.
Lawyers for Gutierrez, who like Baldwin faces an involuntary manslaughter charge, claim she is being scapegoated for the actor's failure to follow basic firearms safety rules.
and a chaotic, low-budget production where industry safety guidelines were ignored to save time.
On Monday, Rust camera crew member Ross Addiego wept as he told jurors of "the concussion, ears ringing, that moment of panic" as Baldwin's gun fired and the first person he made eye contact with was Hutchins as she lay on the ground groaning.
"Miss Gutierrez Reed loaded a firearm that killed my friend," said Addiego, adding that Gutierrez, first assistant director Dave Halls and Baldwin would skip firearms safety checks to try to meet daily production goals.
Halls entered a plea deal last year and was convicted of negligent use of a deadly weapon.
Gutierrez's lawyer Jason Bowles asked Addiego if anyone asked Baldwin, who was also a producer and writer on Rust, to slow filming after there were two accidental firearm discharges and film crew walked off set over safety and working conditions.
"I don't recall anyone standing up to Mr Baldwin on that set," Addiego said.
Baldwin has denied responsibility for Hutchins' death. His lawyers plan to file a motion for charges to be dismissed on grounds that a grand jury failed to follow certain rules when it reinstated charges against him in January.
During Gutierrez's trial on Monday, FBI firearms expert Bryce Ziegler said the Italian-made Pietta revolver Baldwin was holding would not fire when fully cocked without the trigger being pulled.
The testimony contrasted with Baldwin's initial comments after the shooting. He told ABC television in December 2021 that he had cocked the gun but did not pull the trigger.
Charges were dropped against Baldwin last year after new evidence suggested the hammer might have been modified and the gun could have fired without the trigger being pulled.
Australian Associated Press
