A jury convicted movie weapons supervisor Hannah Gutierrez-Reed of involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in October 2021 by actor Alec Baldwin during a rehearsal on the set of the Western movie "Rust." Gutierrez-Reed also faced a second charge of tampering with evidence, stemming from accusations that she handed a small bag of possible narcotics to another crew member after the shooting to avoid detection. She was found not guilty on that count.
Immediately after the verdict was read out in court, the judge ordered the 24-year-old armorer placed into the custody of deputies. Lead attorney Jason Bowles said afterward that Gutierrez-Reed will appeal the conviction, which carries a penalty of up to 18 months in prison and a $5,000 fine.
The trial in Santa Fe was a preamble to actor Alec Baldwin's scheduled trial in July on the single charge of involuntary manslaughter - to which he has pleaded not guilty. Messages seeking comment about Wednesday's verdict from Baldwin’s spokeswoman and a lawyer were not immediately returned.
In closing arguments, prosecutor Kari Morrissey described "constant, never-ending safety failures" on the set of "Rust" and Gutierrez-Reed's "astonishing lack of diligence" with gun safety. "We end exactly where we began – in the pursuit of justice for Halyna Hutchins," Morrissey had told jurors before they began deliberating. "Hannah Gutierrez failed to maintain firearms safety, making a fatal accident willful and foreseeable."
Prosecutors contended that the armorer repeatedly skipped or skimped on standard gun safety protocols that might have detected the live rounds. "This was a game of Russian roulette every time an actor had a gun with dummies," Morrissey said.
Defense attorneys said the problems on the set extended far beyond Gutierrez-Reed’s control, including the mishandling of weapons by Baldwin. At trial, they cited sanctions and findings by state workplace safety investigators.