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The case of the shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins by Alec Baldwin on the set of the film Rust took yet another turn yesterday when attorneys representing the film's armorer claimed the shooting may have resulted from sabotage by a disgruntled employee.
In an appearance on TODAY, lawyers Jason Bowles and Robert Gorence, who are representing armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, laid out details of the case that show both the gun and its ammunition were left unattended, leaving both open to tampering.
See Bowles' and Gorence's full TODAY interview below.
In the interview, Bowles explained that only so-called dummy rounds were supposed to be on the set, and that Gutierrez-Reed loaded the gun from an ammunition box labeled "dummy rounds." Hence, he and Gorence are exploring the possibility that someone deliberately added a live round to the ammunition box.
As Bowles explained to TODAY's Savannah Guthrie:
"We know there was a live round in a box of dummy rounds that shouldn't have been there."
"We have people who had left the set, who had walked out because they were disgruntled."
"We have a time frame between 11 and 1 approximately, that day, in which the firearms at times were unattended, so there was opportunity to tamper with this scene..."
"...We're assuming somebody put the live round in that box — which, if you think about that, the person who put the live round in the box of dummy rounds had to have the purpose of sabotaging the set."
Several Rust crew members have said the film set was plagued with safety violations and pay, benefit and labor disputes, culminating with several crew members quitting the film in the days before the shooting.
But Guthrie seemed dubious about Bowles' and Gorence's theories, which do not account for how live ammunition was not discovered in the final firearm safety procedures required on film sets and which were the responsibility of Gutierrez-Reed and the film's First Assistant Director Dave Halls.
On Twitter, many shared this suspicion of the attorneys' claims and accused them of attempting to scapegoat crew members advocating for a safer working environment.
Even IF there was sabotage it wouldn't absolve her responsibility. It was HER job to check the gun before handing it over to the actor. She failed
Sabotage would just add additional charges to another, not remove hers
Imo, this is a deflection attempt thought up by her lawyer
— Katsuko (@Katsuko_Maru) November 3, 2021
Ugh. I don't really like the direction the armorer's lawyers are headed. (Also if it was sabotage the gun still shouldn't have been loaded with any bullets when it was given to the actor.) #rusthttps://t.co/hmip2G62tkpic.twitter.com/gaRcRZ4cim
— Paul Scheer (@paulscheer) November 3, 2021
2] intentionally put live bullets in the prop gun during the time it was left unattended, she has just admitted criminal negligence in doing her job so poorly.
— Peter Arenella (@arenella1) November 3, 2021
Seems equally if not much more likely that one of the rounds from an earlier session of recreational shooting on the lot got loose & mistaken for a dummy. Sick they need to accuse someone of deadly sabotage to distract from the armorer's failure to catch it when loading the gun.
— vibradiant (@vibradiant) November 3, 2021
Also “the guns were left unattended for hours" really isn't the defense they seem to think it is. Yikes.
— Meg Turney (@megturney) November 3, 2021
I real bullet has a slug on top, a blank doesn't. There is no confusing the two, even for the uneducated. There is also zero reason for real bullets to be anywhere near a movie set. The rumor is she went off set to pop off live rounds in-between filming and forgot to clear gun.
— Arizona Political 💎 (@AZVotes) November 3, 2021
Lawyers ploy to establish “reasonable doubt". Armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was still *solely* responsible for ensuring gun safety, which includes checking “blanks" and gun chamber. No matter how you present case, she is at fault.
— Krista-Lynn (@kristalynnland) November 3, 2021
Let's not forget that their are some lovely and confirmed images of guns left out in the open on tables ..oh look, I found one. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. These lawyers are trying to change a narrative. No experienced armourer would leave them out in the open. pic.twitter.com/XEMkw0exFz
— The Reel Debaters Podcast (@reeldebaters) November 3, 2021
I was a cinematographer for 30 years. I am in the ASC, I am an ASC nominee for outstanding cinematography. I have never seen a live round on a set. No one can touch the guns except the armorer, the safety office (the AD), and the actors. Period.
— Steven Bernstein ASC, DGA, WGA (@stevebfilm) November 3, 2021
Oh, look at that, the lawyer for the "Rust" armorer is speculating that the union workers who walked off set sabotaged the gun. What a totally convenient and unexpected scapegoat!
— Laruna Softpaw🦖🦕🏳️⚧️ (@LarunaSoftpaw) November 3, 2021
She was the armorer on the set of Rust. It was her job to KNOW that where the live rounds came from. This is the best defense her lawyers got? Yikes. https://t.co/4Yd7QhA82Y
— 𝐵𝑒𝒸𝒸𝒶 (@MJFINESSELOVER) October 29, 2021
As for Gutierrez-Reed, her attorneys said she "remains very emotional" in the aftermath of the killing.
Rust was only Gutierrez-Reed's second job as an armorer.
Her attorneys said she was also working a second job on the set as the film's key props assistant.