Alec Baldwin Fatally Shoots Crew Member With Prop Firearm, Authorities Say

[EricH]

Baldwin was handed the revolver and told it was safe. He should have checked for himself, but it's a movie set and actors may not be gun savvy.

I heard him talking and he doesn't know much about guns. A dead giveaway is when people refer to magazines as clips. The army surplus M1 carbine I hunted with as a teenager allowed one to use a clip to quickly load the magazine in the gun, and you can find clips to quickly load selected revolvers for competition shooting, but nothing made in 19th century used such clips to my knowledge. And the magazine in a revolver is usually referred to as the cylinder, not a magazine.

It is the armourer's responsibility, in my opinion, to educate the actors on how the gun works, and show them how to verify that there is no live ammunition in the gun before it is used in a scene. If you are going to be handling a real gun on set, you need to know the safety protocols for the weapon you are working with, and observe the safety protocols. Ignorance is not an excuse.

Some of those period single action revolvers are hard to check because the cylinder doesn't flip out and you can't see the primers. You load by flipping the little side latch and feed one round at a time through the slot while rotating the cylinder to the next empty chamber, and from the front the dummy rounds, unlike blanks, have realistic looking projectiles.

In such a case, the gun should be unloaded and reloaded in front on the actor, and anyone else involved in the scene, so each round can be inspected by the interested parties before it is put back in the gun. Simply looking at the back of the cartridge tells you nothing as to whether the round is live. That is what the state expert testified.

 

[TV and credit cards]

Baldwin was handed the revolver and told it was safe. He should have checked for himself, but it's a movie set and actors may not be gun savvy.

I heard him talking and he doesn't know much about guns. A dead giveaway is when people refer to magazines as clips. The army surplus M1 carbine I hunted with as a teenager allowed one to use a clip to quickly load the magazine in the gun, and you can find clips to quickly load selected revolvers for competition shooting, but nothing made in 19th century used such clips to my knowledge. And the magazine in a revolver is usually referred to as the cylinder, not a magazine.

It is the armourer's responsibility, in my opinion, to educate the actors on how the gun works, and show them how to verify that there is no live ammunition in the gun before it is used in a scene. If you are going to be handling a real gun on set, you need to know the safety protocols for the weapon you are working with, and observe the safety protocols. Ignorance is not an excuse.

Some of those period single action revolvers are hard to check because the cylinder doesn't flip out and you can't see the primers. You load by flipping the little side latch and feed one round at a time through the slot while rotating the cylinder to the next empty chamber, and from the front the dummy rounds, unlike blanks, have realistic looking projectiles.

In such a case, the gun should be unloaded and reloaded in front on the actor, and anyone else involved in the scene, so each round can be inspected by the interested parties before it is put back in the gun. Simply looking at the back of the cartridge tells you nothing as to whether the round is live. That is what the state expert testified.

Anyone handling a gun should be familiar with that particular gun. If they can take the time to learn their lines, they can take the time, probably less than a hour for weapon familiarization. The armorer should hand over an empty weapon and the appropriate rounds. The recipient should be responsible for loading and unloading it. Both individuals verify it's empty upon receipt. No one is asking these people to do something as complicated as say, building something out of Legos. This is some pretty simple shit. And if Alec Baldwin had even basic familiarization (safety) training he would never have had is finger inside the trigger guard, let alone pointing and firing it until the intended time. If he did have this basic training then it should be his ass on the line.

 

[hurtinbuckaroo]

Baldwin was handed the revolver and told it was safe. He should have checked for himself, but it's a movie set and actors may not be gun savvy.

I heard him talking and he doesn't know much about guns. A dead giveaway is when people refer to magazines as clips. The army surplus M1 carbine I hunted with as a teenager allowed one to use a clip to quickly load the magazine in the gun, and you can find clips to quickly load selected revolvers for competition shooting, but nothing made in 19th century used such clips to my knowledge. And the magazine in a revolver is usually referred to as the cylinder, not a magazine.

It is the armourer's responsibility, in my opinion, to educate the actors on how the gun works, and show them how to verify that there is no live ammunition in the gun before it is used in a scene. If you are going to be handling a real gun on set, you need to know the safety protocols for the weapon you are working with, and observe the safety protocols. Ignorance is not an excuse.

Some of those period single action revolvers are hard to check because the cylinder doesn't flip out and you can't see the primers. You load by flipping the little side latch and feed one round at a time through the slot while rotating the cylinder to the next empty chamber, and from the front the dummy rounds, unlike blanks, have realistic looking projectiles.

In such a case, the gun should be unloaded and reloaded in front on the actor, and anyone else involved in the scene, so each round can be inspected by the interested parties before it is put back in the gun. Simply looking at the back of the cartridge tells you nothing as to whether the round is live. That is what the state expert testified.

Anyone handling a gun should be familiar with that particular gun. If they can take the time to learn their lines, they can take the time, probably less than a hour for weapon familiarization. The armorer should hand over an empty weapon and the appropriate rounds. The recipient should be responsible for loading and unloading it. Both individuals verify it's empty upon receipt. No one is asking these people to do something as complicated as say, building something out of Legos. This is some pretty simple shit. And if Alec Baldwin had even basic familiarization (safety) training he would never have had is finger inside the trigger guard, let alone pointing and firing it until the intended time. If he did have this basic training then it should be his ass on the line.

I’ve seen movies where having the actors verify and load their own weapons would take days. For one take.

Who gets blamed if an actor is injured because they improperly loaded a magazine?

 

[TV and credit cards]

Baldwin was handed the revolver and told it was safe. He should have checked for himself, but it's a movie set and actors may not be gun savvy.

I heard him talking and he doesn't know much about guns. A dead giveaway is when people refer to magazines as clips. The army surplus M1 carbine I hunted with as a teenager allowed one to use a clip to quickly load the magazine in the gun, and you can find clips to quickly load selected revolvers for competition shooting, but nothing made in 19th century used such clips to my knowledge. And the magazine in a revolver is usually referred to as the cylinder, not a magazine.

It is the armourer's responsibility, in my opinion, to educate the actors on how the gun works, and show them how to verify that there is no live ammunition in the gun before it is used in a scene. If you are going to be handling a real gun on set, you need to know the safety protocols for the weapon you are working with, and observe the safety protocols. Ignorance is not an excuse.

Some of those period single action revolvers are hard to check because the cylinder doesn't flip out and you can't see the primers. You load by flipping the little side latch and feed one round at a time through the slot while rotating the cylinder to the next empty chamber, and from the front the dummy rounds, unlike blanks, have realistic looking projectiles.

In such a case, the gun should be unloaded and reloaded in front on the actor, and anyone else involved in the scene, so each round can be inspected by the interested parties before it is put back in the gun. Simply looking at the back of the cartridge tells you nothing as to whether the round is live. That is what the state expert testified.

Anyone handling a gun should be familiar with that particular gun. If they can take the time to learn their lines, they can take the time, probably less than a hour for weapon familiarization. The armorer should hand over an empty weapon and the appropriate rounds. The recipient should be responsible for loading and unloading it. Both individuals verify it's empty upon receipt. No one is asking these people to do something as complicated as say, building something out of Legos. This is some pretty simple shit. And if Alec Baldwin had even basic familiarization (safety) training he would never have had is finger inside the trigger guard, let alone pointing and firing it until the intended time. If he did have this basic training then it should be his ass on the line.

I’ve seen movies where having the actors verify and load their own weapons would take days. For one take.

Who gets blamed if an actor is injured because they improperly loaded a magazine?

I don't know what to tell you. Enlisted military personnel can manage this, a short 20 minute e-learning course in which a perfect score has to be obtained and then a safety brief/range qualification. Why an actor can not meet this mark is beyond me.

The person with the weapon in their hand.

 

[hurtinbuckaroo]

Baldwin was handed the revolver and told it was safe. He should have checked for himself, but it's a movie set and actors may not be gun savvy.

I heard him talking and he doesn't know much about guns. A dead giveaway is when people refer to magazines as clips. The army surplus M1 carbine I hunted with as a teenager allowed one to use a clip to quickly load the magazine in the gun, and you can find clips to quickly load selected revolvers for competition shooting, but nothing made in 19th century used such clips to my knowledge. And the magazine in a revolver is usually referred to as the cylinder, not a magazine.

It is the armourer's responsibility, in my opinion, to educate the actors on how the gun works, and show them how to verify that there is no live ammunition in the gun before it is used in a scene. If you are going to be handling a real gun on set, you need to know the safety protocols for the weapon you are working with, and observe the safety protocols. Ignorance is not an excuse.

Some of those period single action revolvers are hard to check because the cylinder doesn't flip out and you can't see the primers. You load by flipping the little side latch and feed one round at a time through the slot while rotating the cylinder to the next empty chamber, and from the front the dummy rounds, unlike blanks, have realistic looking projectiles.

In such a case, the gun should be unloaded and reloaded in front on the actor, and anyone else involved in the scene, so each round can be inspected by the interested parties before it is put back in the gun. Simply looking at the back of the cartridge tells you nothing as to whether the round is live. That is what the state expert testified.

Anyone handling a gun should be familiar with that particular gun. If they can take the time to learn their lines, they can take the time, probably less than a hour for weapon familiarization. The armorer should hand over an empty weapon and the appropriate rounds. The recipient should be responsible for loading and unloading it. Both individuals verify it's empty upon receipt. No one is asking these people to do something as complicated as say, building something out of Legos. This is some pretty simple shit. And if Alec Baldwin had even basic familiarization (safety) training he would never have had is finger inside the trigger guard, let alone pointing and firing it until the intended time. If he did have this basic training then it should be his ass on the line.

I’ve seen movies where having the actors verify and load their own weapons would take days. For one take.

Who gets blamed if an actor is injured because they improperly loaded a magazine?

I don't know what to tell you. Enlisted military personnel can manage this, a short 20 minute e-learning course in which a perfect score has to be obtained and then a safety brief/range qualification. Why an actor can not meet this mark is beyond me.

The person with the weapon in their hand.

And no enlisted military personnel ever have trouble after that? What are the legal/financial consequences if a soldier is injured because he screws something up? Same as if an actor does it?

 

[DBT]

Whatever bad gun handling Baldwin was engaged in, the job of the armorer is to put a stop to actors mishandling firearms. Perhaps a power imbalance played a part, a young relatively inexperienced person trying to build a career having deal with a big star who might ruin their prospects for future work if they cause trouble, yet safety on set comes before reputation.

In the instance that they were rehearsing a scene, apparently Baldwin was meant to point the gun at the camera and pull the trigger, so the fault lies with whoever mixed up the ammo and supposedly checked the revolver before handing it to Baldwin.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

It is indeed, both safer and cheaper for the film to have an armorer perform this task than the actor. The armorer is a lot more familiar/trained and a lot less costly to do such a task.

 

[ZiprHead]

The “Rust” armorer was sentenced to 18 months in prison yesterday.​

Why? Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in March for her role in the fatal on-set shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in 2021.
What’s next? The film’s star, Alec Baldwin, who was handling the weapon when it discharged, is facing trial this summer on involuntary manslaughter charges.

 

[thebeave]

Holy Crap! Alec Baldwin is free man now. Trial is over.

ALEC BALDWIN JUDGE DISMISSES CASE AFTER PROSECUTIORIAL MISCONDUCT Baldwin Weeps In Court

It's a stunning turn ... Alec Baldwin's manslaughter trial has come to an abrupt end as the judge dismissed the case after finding law enforcement had concealed evidence that prevented the actor from preparing his defense.

Baldwin broke down in tears, as did his wife, Hilaria, as it became apparent the judge was dismissing the case.

 

[hurtinbuckaroo]

Apparently they were so busy trying to become famous that they ignored the law. Maybe they should be prosecuted.

 

[TSwizzle]

The whole thing is awful. The poor woman who lost her life working for this shoddy production on a straight to video movie. I feel somebody needs to face consequences for this but I'm not sure who to blame and I'm sure there is more than one person has failed in their duties and responsibilities for safety on set that led to this terrible incident.

 

[thebeave]

The whole thing is awful. The poor woman who lost her life working for this shoddy production on a straight to video movie. I feel somebody needs to face consequences for this but I'm not sure who to blame and I'm sure there is more than one person has failed in their duties and responsibilities for safety on set that led to this terrible incident.

The person who is most responsible for this, the armorer, had her day in court and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Personally, I think she should have got more. She should never have had this job in the first place. As much as I don't care for Alec Baldwin, I don't think he should have been held responsible as an actor for the death of HH. Perhaps as a producer, though, as IIRC, ensuring set safety was part of his responsibilities.

 

[TSwizzle]

The whole thing is awful. The poor woman who lost her life working for this shoddy production on a straight to video movie. I feel somebody needs to face consequences for this but I'm not sure who to blame and I'm sure there is more than one person has failed in their duties and responsibilities for safety on set that led to this terrible incident.

The person who is most responsible for this, the armorer, had her day in court and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Personally, I think she should have got more. She should never have had this job in the first place. As much as I don't care for Alec Baldwin, I don't think he should have been held responsible as an actor for the death of HH. Perhaps as a producer, though, as IIRC, ensuring set safety was part of his responsibilities.

Yes, as far as I know, only the armorer has faced any significant consequences. But as I say, she cannot be the only one who bears some responsibility for the death of Halyna Hutchins. Her death has to be down to a chain of events, who hired her for example. The production company should have some liability in this too. The armorer seems to have taken the fall so far.

 

[blastula]

The whole thing is awful. The poor woman who lost her life working for this shoddy production on a straight to video movie. I feel somebody needs to face consequences for this but I'm not sure who to blame and I'm sure there is more than one person has failed in their duties and responsibilities for safety on set that led to this terrible incident.

The person who is most responsible for this, the armorer, had her day in court and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Personally, I think she should have got more. She should never have had this job in the first place. As much as I don't care for Alec Baldwin, I don't think he should have been held responsible as an actor for the death of HH. Perhaps as a producer, though, as IIRC, ensuring set safety was part of his responsibilities.

18 months is the max for her charge, the same as was for Baldwin.

She may get out of it too now though. Well she will try, but seems doubtful that this evidence issue has any bearing on her case.

Lawyers for ‘Rust’ armourer move to get case dismissed after Baldwin trial collapses

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in March for Halnya Hutchins’ death and sentenced to 18 months in prison

www.independent.co.uk

 

[blastula]

Baldwin has paid some financial price at least, because he had already settled in a lawsuit filed by her husband. And her family in Ukraine has also filed a lawsuit which is proceeding.

 

[thebeave]

Going all the way back to the beginning, this prosecution has bumbled every step of the way. I didn't think such gross incompetence was even possible. Makes you wonder about the validity of the other cases they have handled over the years.

 

[Harry Bosch]

The whole thing is awful. The poor woman who lost her life working for this shoddy production on a straight to video movie. I feel somebody needs to face consequences for this but I'm not sure who to blame and I'm sure there is more than one person has failed in their duties and responsibilities for safety on set that led to this terrible incident.

The person who is most responsible for this, the armorer, had her day in court and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Personally, I think she should have got more. She should never have had this job in the first place. As much as I don't care for Alec Baldwin, I don't think he should have been held responsible as an actor for the death of HH. Perhaps as a producer, though, as IIRC, ensuring set safety was part of his responsibilities.

Yes, as far as I know, only the armorer has faced any significant consequences. But as I say, she cannot be the only one who bears some responsibility for the death of Halyna Hutchins. Her death has to be down to a chain of events, who hired her for example. The production company should have some liability in this too. The armorer seems to have taken the fall so far.

Well yea. The armorer is the one responsible for loading a live round into a gun that was to be used in the making of a movie. It's just about the dumbest thing that I've ever heard of. I mean honestly, you want to hold someone responsible for not telling the armorer that it's not a good idea to load a live round into weapon?

 

[thebeave]

The whole thing is awful. The poor woman who lost her life working for this shoddy production on a straight to video movie. I feel somebody needs to face consequences for this but I'm not sure who to blame and I'm sure there is more than one person has failed in their duties and responsibilities for safety on set that led to this terrible incident.

The person who is most responsible for this, the armorer, had her day in court and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Personally, I think she should have got more. She should never have had this job in the first place. As much as I don't care for Alec Baldwin, I don't think he should have been held responsible as an actor for the death of HH. Perhaps as a producer, though, as IIRC, ensuring set safety was part of his responsibilities.

Yes, as far as I know, only the armorer has faced any significant consequences. But as I say, she cannot be the only one who bears some responsibility for the death of Halyna Hutchins. Her death has to be down to a chain of events, who hired her for example. The production company should have some liability in this too. The armorer seems to have taken the fall so far.

Well yea. The armorer is the one responsible for loading a live round into a gun that was to be used in the making of a movie. It's just about the dumbest thing that I've ever heard of. I mean honestly, you want to hold someone responsible for not telling the armorer that it's not a good idea to load a live round into weapon?

Yep. The only way out for the armorer that I could see would be if the supplier of the blanks and/or dummy rounds was so negligent or malicious that they included live rounds mixed in with the fakes, and failed to make them obviously dissimilar to the naked eye. But that appears to be not the case here, as it was reported that the crew was doing some target practice earlier with live rounds.

 

[Harry Bosch]

The whole thing is awful. The poor woman who lost her life working for this shoddy production on a straight to video movie. I feel somebody needs to face consequences for this but I'm not sure who to blame and I'm sure there is more than one person has failed in their duties and responsibilities for safety on set that led to this terrible incident.

The person who is most responsible for this, the armorer, had her day in court and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Personally, I think she should have got more. She should never have had this job in the first place. As much as I don't care for Alec Baldwin, I don't think he should have been held responsible as an actor for the death of HH. Perhaps as a producer, though, as IIRC, ensuring set safety was part of his responsibilities.

Yes, as far as I know, only the armorer has faced any significant consequences. But as I say, she cannot be the only one who bears some responsibility for the death of Halyna Hutchins. Her death has to be down to a chain of events, who hired her for example. The production company should have some liability in this too. The armorer seems to have taken the fall so far.

Well yea. The armorer is the one responsible for loading a live round into a gun that was to be used in the making of a movie. It's just about the dumbest thing that I've ever heard of. I mean honestly, you want to hold someone responsible for not telling the armorer that it's not a good idea to load a live round into weapon?

Yep. The only way out for the armorer that I could see would be if the supplier of the blanks and/or dummy rounds was so negligent or malicious that they included live rounds mixed in with the fakes, and failed to make them obviously dissimilar to the naked eye. But that appears to be not the case here, as it was reported that the crew was doing some target practice earlier with live rounds.

BTW: I didn't know about the live fire target practice (that explains this a little I guess).

 

[TSwizzle]

Well yea. The armorer is the one responsible for loading a live round into a gun that was to be used in the making of a movie. It's just about the dumbest thing that I've ever heard of. I mean honestly, you want to hold someone responsible for not telling the armorer that it's not a good idea to load a live round into weapon?

I would say she did not know she was loading live rounds. I just think there’s more to it and more people should be taken to task. I’m not sure if Baldwin bears any responsibility or not, probably not.

It’s a horrible tragedy and it should never have happened.