Video Emerges Showing Alec Baldwin Firing 'Rust' Prop Gun, Teaching Safe Handling Days Before Fatal Shooting
Five newly released videos show actor Alec Baldwin getting ready for scenes and shooting prop guns multiple times on the New Mexico set of his movie “Rust,” where days later, he fired the shot that killed videographer Halyna Hutchins.
The videos show Baldwin using the weapon used in Hutchins’ death, according to NBC News, who obtained the footage. Although the gun was a prop, it allegedly contained a live, and ultimately fatal, round.
Baldwin is seen practicing gun draw moves and expressing concern about safety issues, at one point telling a person off camera to move, because “I don’t want to shoot towards you.”
New footage reveals Alec Baldwin discussing gun safety with crew days before Halyna Hutchins shootinghttps://t.co/awuJad92mHhttps://t.co/awuJad92mH
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) November 16, 2023
New Mexico special prosecutor Kari Morrisey declined to say how much video footage the prosecuting team viewed or what parts played a role in their decision, but prosecutors stated on Oct. 17 that they intended to re-charge Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter.
The team was originally scheduled to convene a grand jury to make the decision on Thursday, but the judge rescheduled the proceeding during a teleconference on Wednesday.
Prosecutors reportedly requested video evidence previously, but they did not receive the latest five tapes until October.
These five tapes contain approximately seven minutes of additional film.
The shooting occurred in October 2021, according to People. The bullet killed Hutchins, 42, and injured director Joel Souza, 50.
On January 31, 2023, prosecutors charged both Baldwin and set armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who is scheduled to face trial in February.
However, they dropped the charges against Baldwin in April, saying “new facts” had prompted the decision. They added that they still reserved the right to charge him at a later date if further evidence emerged that would indicate his culpability.
The new facts to which they referred included suggestions that the gun may have been modified without Baldwin’s knowledge or that it may have malfunctioned, according to CBS News.
Baldwin and his legal team have long contended that the actor had never pulled the trigger on the gun.
An Aug. 2 report from the forensic examiners stated that video footage appeared to show Baldwin’s finger on or near the trigger at various points during filming.
In addition, the analysis of the gun showed it would likely require a trigger pull in order to fire, according to examiner Lucien Haag.
The FBI examiner came to the same conclusion.
Baldwin has maintained his innocence, stating in a 2021 interview, “Someone is responsible for what happened, and I can’t say who that is, but I know it’s not me.”
He went on to file lawsuits against several people on set.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.