Alec Baldwin to be charged with involuntary manslaughter

[Harrysfrostbittentodger]

Prosecutors have announced they will file criminal charges against Hollywood star and producer Alec Baldwin following the death of Halyna Hutchins in 2021. The cinematographer died after a prop gun held by Baldwin was discharged during rehearsals for the western film Rust.

The film's armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who was responsible for weapons on set, is also facing the same charge over the fatal shooting, while assistant director David Halls has signed a plea agreement for the charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon.

I can’t think that any other outcome would be acceptable. He was in charge and he didn’t have control of a situation where lethal weapons were being used. And he fired the gun knowing this.

Good. It’s not an excuse to fire a gun and say you didn’t know what was in it when you kill someone. why on earth would there be live bullets on film set anyway?!

I hope this brings some restoration to Halyna’s family. Her poor son shouldn’t be growing up without his Mum because she went to work.

why on earth would there be live bullets on film set anyway?!

Exactly. So why on earth would he have even considered the possibility that there might be? Film armourers and stunt co-ordinators are highly trained professionals, and are responsible for the safety of everyone on set. Actors and other crew are totally used to props being made safe for them, and they place their trust in the hands of the professionals.

He would have not for one moment thought that the gun was unsafe and contained live ammunition. Why would he? No actor would ever expect to be handed a gun with real bullets in it.

This is a terrible tragedy for all concerned, but I don't really think he was the culpable party.

I have to agree with this. Whoever put live bullets in the gun needs to be charged.

I agree with @blacksax
if the person in charge of guns told me the prop gun was safe, how else can I check it’s safe?
the only thing that would change that is if that person had been prevented from doing their job in a safe way, then whoever made those decisions preventing safe working is just as culpable, which may well be the case here

Based on the facts we know, it seems harsh to me. The people in charge of the guns and ammunition are the culpable ones.

I think this is very unjust, based on what I've read about the case (which could be inaccurate, to be fair)

As I understand it, he had a reasonable expectation that that weapon was a prop, and incapable of doing harm. He wasn't the one who altered it to render it unsafe. Somebody did, and that person should be facing charges.

He wasn’t just an actor in this film, he was the director and hired the crew. He hired an extremely young and inexperienced armourer as a way of saving money. This was his decision and knowing that he should have checked the gun.

He will probably be found not guilty based on jurors agreeing with what blacksax thinks. And I think that would be a just outcome.

I can understand her family probably wanting someone to be charged. I would just hope he isn’t found guilty as I don’t think that would be fair.

I didn’t know this. So it is actually corporate manslaughter.

I assume he's been charged as the director, rather than because he happened to me the one who held the gun?

I also assumed he was charged as the director and not the actor

I think he was co-producer rather than director but the same logic applies

For those in the know, why is this case considered involuntary manslaughter but Brandon Lee’s similar death was ruled as an accident due to negligence?

Well, presumably she had the correct license/qualifications to be an armoured on a film set. I presume these things are regulated. So her age and experience shouldn’t be relevant.

If she didn’t have those qualifications, then that’s different of course.

It beggars belief that anything remotely capable of firing a bullet should have been on a film set as a prop. Don't fake, prop guns exist?!

I'm sure Alec Baldwin meant no harm and is devastated by what happened, but as a producer he must accept some responsibility.

Also, does involuntary manslaughter mean a jail sentence if found guilty?

Apparently, there are two separate charges of involuntary manslaughter, one of which - the more serious charge - carries a mandatory 5 years in jail.

Isn’t he the producer of the film? Ultimately the buck stops with him

What on earth was a loaded gun doing on a film set. Why would an actor think it might be loaded. Surely it was the props manager responsibility to check it. Who did the gun belong to. I can't see how the actor can be culpable.

The set was so unsafe that the crew had made complaints and walked off. The girl he hired as the armourer was a 25 year old nepo baby whose Dad had been in the industry and didn’t have a clue what she was doing. Anyone with half a brain would know someone much older and more experienced should be used in such an important role.

www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2021-10-22/alec-baldwin-rust-camera-crew-walked-off-set

Was Reed that inexperienced though? It was her second time being head armourer on a movie set, and she was the daughter of a stuntman and legendary armourer called Thell Reed, she would have been extremely familiar with guns, both prop and real. The question is how the hell a live bullet was put in a gun that was to be used on set.

A friend of mine is a stunt man. I'd be interested to know what he thinks about it all.

As far as I'm concerned, whoever took live ammunition onto the film set is ultimately responsible.

Brandon Lee was killed by a dummy round that was defective which couldn't have been known beforehand. All the necessary safety precautions and checks had been done. The gun was shot as part of a film scene. In that situation it's so reasonable to think it was safe to shoot the weapon so it is classed as an accident.

A lawyer for Alec Baldwin has condemned the charges brought against him as a "terrible miscarriage of justice".
A statement from Luke Nikas, of Quinn Emanuel, added that Mr Balwin will "fight these charges - and we will win".
He said: "This decision distorts Halyna Hutchins's tragic death and represents a terrible miscarriage of justice.

"Mr Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun – or anywhere on the movie set. He relied on the professionals with whom he worked, who assured him the gun did not have live rounds.

"We will fight these charges, and we will win."