The trial of Alec Baldwin has begun. The Hollywood star is painted as someone who disregards rules and has little regard for safety.
At the beginning of the trial, which takes place in Santa Fe in the state of New Mexico, the prosecutor repeated that Alec Baldwin’s way of “pretending” to handle the weapon during the filming of the movie “Rust” led to real danger and the death of photographer Halyna Hutchins.
According to the prosecutor, Baldwin must have been nonchalant about rules and showed no interest in safety management. He also allegedly asked for the biggest gun, and during a rehearsal let others film him while he ran around shooting the weapon.
Uninterested in security
In behind-the-scenes footage, according to the prosecutor, you can see how disinterested the actor is in basic firearms safety. How he cocks the cock when he’s not supposed to, and puts his finger on the trigger when he shouldn’t.
In Alec Baldwin’s defense, the actor’s lawyer claims that Baldwin was just doing what actors do.
“He has to be able to take the weapon and use it the way the person he’s playing would have,” the lawyer said.
That includes pulling the trigger, according to the attorney who argues that it is not manslaughter even if Baldwin had intentionally fired the weapon. “On a film shoot, you get to press the shutter.”
Weapons officers
Baldwin’s defense claims that those responsible for the firearm are responsible. According to the lawyer, it has been double-checked by those responsible for filming that the gun was harmless.
“He (Baldwin) didn’t tinker with it, he didn’t load it himself. He did not leave it unattended,” said the lawyer.
The weapon responsible for the filming, 24-year-old Hanna Gutierrez Reed, has previously been sentenced to one and a half years in prison for causing the death of another.
It was in October 2021 that Baldwin fired a shot that killed photographer Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza during the filming of the movie “Rust”. The weapon, which would have been loaded with loose rounds, turned out to be live loaded. Alec Baldwin, who is charged with murder, denies wrongdoing.
If 66-year-old Baldwin is convicted, he too risks 18 months in prison.
