The Screen Actors Guild is standing behind Alec Baldwin. Earlier today, SAG released a statement in support of Baldwin after the actor was recently indicted for involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

The union specified that Baldwin, as a performer, is not “expected to be experts on guns,” and that those responsibilities are left to “qualified professionals.”

“An actor’s job is not to be a firearms or weapons expert,” the union said, per Variety. “Performers train to perform, and they are not required or expected to be experts on guns or experienced in their use. The industry assigns that responsibility to qualified professionals who oversee their use and handling in every aspect.”

The fatal shooting occurred in October 2021 as Baldwin was preparing for a rehearsal. He was reportedly told by assistant director Dave Halls that the gun he was using in the scene was “cold,” meaning that it had no live ammo in it. The gun then fired, killing Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza in the process, although Baldwin repeatedly insisted he did not pull the trigger.

Baldwin’s defense team has also claimed that the Colt .45 was not functioning properly at the time of the shooting, which led to the initial charges being dropped in April 2023. But further forensic testing found that the gun could only fire if someone had pulled the trigger.

According to Variety, the forensic report stated, “Although Alec Baldwin repeatedly denies pulling the trigger, given the tests, findings and observations reported here, the trigger had to be pulled or depressed sufficiently to release the fully cocked or retracted hammer of the evidence revolver.”

Baldwin is now facing two counts of involuntary manslaughter. If convicted, he could serve up to 18 months in prison.

Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed is expected to go on trial next month on charges of involuntary manslaughter and evidence tampering. She reportedly loaded a live bullet instead of a dummy round into Baldwin’s gun.

SAG-AFTRA has previously spoken out in support of Baldwin when he was first facing involuntary manslaughter charges.

“The prosecutor’s contention that an actor has a duty to ensure the functional and mechanical operation of a firearm on a production set is wrong and uninformed,” they said in a statement in January 2023.

After pointing out that “an experienced, qualified armorer” should be the one in charge of all firearms on set, SAG-AFTRA stated, “The guidelines do not make it the performer’s responsibility to check any firearm.”