The actor of 30 Rock was brandishing a Colt during a tragic rehearsal in October 2021 in New Mexico, when the gun discharged a bullet that killed the western film’s cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins, and wounded the director.
He has insisted he did not know the gun was loaded and denies pulling the trigger.
But in the opening arguments of the trial taking place in Santa Fe, in the southwestern United States, the fiscal Erlinda Ocampo Johnson characterized him as a powerful movie star who behaved irresponsibly and without due regard for the safety of others on the set.
“Baldwin fantasized about owning a real gun and violated basic gun safety rules,” Johnson told jurors.
The prosecutor said Baldwin asked to be assigned the largest gun available to him at the scene. Rustwho had not taken weapons handling training seriously, and who was pointing gunshots at other people on the set.
“These filming rules require actors, like the defendant, to handle every firearm as if it were loaded, to never point a firearm at another person and to never put their finger on the trigger unless they are prepared to shoot,” he added.
“Shootings in the movies”
Baldwin, 66, could face up to 18 months in prison if convicted.
The star arrived at the Santa Fe court wearing a dark suit and tie. He chatted calmly with his wife Hilaria and his younger brother Stephen as they waited for the trial to begin.
One of his lawyers, Alex Spiro – whose client list includes names like Elon Musk and Jay-Z – developed a lengthy opening argument rejecting that normal gun safety rules apply to actors while in character.
“These fundamental rules are not such on a film set,” Spiro said. “You’ve seen gunfights in movies,” he told the jury, citing such cinema classics as Pelotn, Apocalipsis y Butch Cassidy“This is possible because security is guaranteed before the actor receives the weapon,” he added.
Spiro placed the blame on the film’s security personnel, including gunsmith Hannah Gutierrez, in charge of the production’s firearms, and first assistant director David Halls.
Gutiérrez was found guilty this year by the same court in Santa Fe and is serving an 18-month prison sentence.
Halls pleaded guilty to negligence as part of a plea bargain that spared him prison time.
Live bullets are banned in US studios.
Spiro also blamed police for failing to find the bullet that took Hutchins’ life.
Halyna Hutchins
Hutchins, who industry insiders say was a rising star, was 42 when she died. Of Ukrainian origin, she was married and had one son.
She was fatally wounded during a rehearsal for Rust at a chapel at Bonanza Creek Ranch, about 30 kilometers from Santa Fe, on October 21, 2021.
Baldwin was rehearsing a scene in which his outlaw character pulls out his Colt in a church after being cornered by two officers.
Rust-afp.jpg
AFP/Gabriela Campos
His defense showed a previous footage of the scene to the jury on Wednesday.
Spiro insisted that Baldwin was told the revolver was “cold,” which in film slang means out of ammunition and safe to use, and that Hutchins instructed him to point the revolver at the camera when it discharged.
An FBI report contradicts part of Baldwin’s testimony by concluding that the revolver could not have been fired without the trigger being pulled.
The Prosecutor will bring the manufacturer of the weapon among his witnesses to support this.
But the FBI’s evidence damaged the gun, Spiro recalled, telling jurors that this prevents them from contradicting the report. He went so far as to suggest that the destruction of the revolver was deliberate.
Witnesses
The first witnesses for the prosecution in this highly publicized trial were police officers who responded to the emergency call that October afternoon.
The jury saw body camera videos, including dramatic footage of some of Hutchins’ final moments.
Baldwin sat through the testimony mostly with his arms crossed and with occasional glances at the jury.
It is unclear whether Baldwin will take the stand. Legal experts say it would be a risky move given that the reportedly temperamental actor would face enemy fire during questioning.
Spiro reminded jurors on Tuesday that his feelings about Baldwin’s career, which includes impersonating former President Donald Trump on the comedy show Saturday Night Livecannot influence their verdict.
The trial is due to conclude on Friday of next week, after which the jury will deliberate.
FUENTE: AFP