Testimony at trial Monday turned emotional and argumentative as an eyewitness recounted the fatal 2021 shooting of a cinematographer by actor Alec Baldwin during a movie rehearsal and described gun misfires, crew members walking out, and a "ludicrous" pace of work, the AP reports. Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who was the armorer for the upcoming Western movie Rust, is fighting charges of involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence at a trial that entered its third day of testimony Monday. A trial date was set for Baldwin in July on a single charge of involuntary manslaughter in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. He has pleaded not guilty.
Defense attorneys highlighted Gutierrez-Reed's unusual disadvantage and vulnerability at the time as a part-time, 24-year-old armorer without trade-union membership on a set where few dared confront Baldwin directly about concerns about safety and related budgeting. Monday's testimony veered into the actor's handling of the revolver that killed Hutchins—including a video from the day of the shooting of Baldwin twice practicing a cross-draw maneuver, which was accompanied by searing testimony from Ross Addiego, a front-line Rust crew member who described his anger and frustration with safety procedures on set. He said prior to the fatal shooting he lodged safety complaints with union representatives and the film's top safety official, assistant director David Halls, who pleaded no contest last year to a charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon and may be called on to testify.
In a tense cross-examination, defense attorney Jason Bowles asked Addiego whether he was aware that Gutierrez-Reed had unsuccessfully requested more time for focus on her responsibilities as armorer instead of other prop duties, such as rolling cowboy cigarettes. "Did you ever stand up to Mr. Baldwin and say, 'No, we're not going to move this fast?'" Bowles asked. "That's not my job," Addiego said. Bowles continued: "With everybody else, grown men, not standing up to Mr. Baldwin, wouldn't you find that difficult for her also?" He noted that Addiego has sued Baldwin and Rust Movie Productions and questioned his motives in testifying. (More from Monday's testimony here.)
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