(TotalConservative.com) – Actor Alec Baldwin was charged with involuntary manslaughter on Tuesday, January 31st, for fatally shooting cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal on set on October 21, 2021.
During a rehearsal, Baldwin drew and pointed a single-action Colt .45 revolver at Hutchins. He claims he only drew back the hammer of the weapon and that it “went off” without him pulling the trigger. That claim is disputed by many weapons experts.
Regardless of how it happened precisely, Baldwin shot and killed Hutchins and injured the director who was standing close to her at the time with the same shot. Film-set weapons supervisor Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was also charged with involuntary manslaughter.
Both Gutierrez-Reed and Baldwin have maintained their innocence and will contest the charges in court.
Court documents reveal prosecutors’ intent to describe the set as riddled with safety concerns. According to them, Baldwin failed to appear for mandatory weapons training and was directly responsible for hiring Gutierrez-Reed, an uncertified armorer.
Involuntary manslaughter is the charge prosecutors deploy when someone was killed during a dangerous activity where more safety precautions should have been in place. If you’re working on a film and there is gunfire involved the industry has developed a host of standards, many of which were allegedly abrogated on Baldwin’s set for “Rust.”
Robert Shilling is a special investigator who worked directly for Santa Fe’s district attorney. He claimed “Baldwin’s deviation from known standards, practices, and protocol directly caused the fatal death of Hutchins” in a written statement.
Baldwin’s attorney Luke Nikas refused to issue any new comments on Tuesday referring media to an earlier statement where he described the charges as a “terrible miscarriage of justice” and anticipated winning in court.
Gutierrez-Reed attorney Jason Bowles blamed a “flawed investigation” and an “inaccurate understanding of the full facts” for the charges against his client.
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