"Rust" trial

Assistant director testified in tears in court

"Rust" assistant director David Halls burst into tears in court.

(Bild: APA/Gabriela Campos/Santa Fe New Mexican via AP, Pool))

In an emotional testimony, former assistant director David Halls described how - according to his memory - camerawoman Halyna Hutchins was killed by a shot on the set of the western "Rust". There were also tears in the courtroom in Santa Fe. In the ongoing criminal trial, master-at-arms Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is charged with involuntary manslaughter.

He was standing very close to Hutchins when leading actor Alec Baldwin operated the gun, said Halls. He rushed to the camerawoman lying on the ground and asked her how she felt. She said she could no longer feel her legs, Halls said through tears.

The 42-year-old was fatally injured in the incident at Bonanza Creek Ranch in October 2021. Director Joel Souza was hit in the shoulder by the same bullet when the shot was fired from a prop gun.

Halls, who was also responsible for security at the shoot, was charged with negligent handling of a weapon the previous year. He admitted his guilt at the time and received a suspended sentence.

Weapon not carefully checked
Gutierrez-Reed has been on trial since last week and could receive a prison sentence if found guilty. A trial against Baldwin for involuntary manslaughter is scheduled for July.

Halls described the moment of the fatal shooting on the "Rust" set.

(Bild: APA/Gabriela Campos/Santa Fe New Mexican via AP, Pool))

Halls testified Thursday that he had not carefully checked the gun Gutierrez-Reed had previously loaded. He was appearing here as a witness because he wanted the truth to come out so that nothing like this would ever happen again during filming.

One of the key questions in the trial is how the live ammunition got onto the set. In addition to blanks and dummy cartridges, the investigators also found real cartridges. One of them got into the revolver drum during loading.

Allegations against Baldwin
According to prosecutor Jason Lewis, Gutierrez-Reed allegedly disregarded the most important safety precautions and caused the camerawoman's death with her negligent behavior.

Gutierrez-Reed's lawyer Jason Bowles, on the other hand, accused lead actor and producer Baldwin and others involved in the production of gross negligence in the handling of weapons. The producers had ignored precautionary measures in order to make a quick buck. His young client now has to serve as a "scapegoat" for the mistakes of others.