Rust production wanted to fire ‘difficult to work with’ armourer before Alec Baldwin shooting
“Rust” first assistant director David Halls testified during the trial, and choked up when he recalled the shooting of Halyna Hutchins
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“Rust” prop master Sarah Zachry testified during the trial and admitted to a defence attorney that she had previously voiced a desire to both fire Hannah Gutierrez-Reed and — after the shooting of Halyna Hutchins — see her sent to prison.
After the cross-exam, Ms Zachry told the prosection that the armourer was not easy to work with and confirmed that Gutierrez-Reed had called her a “c***,” which the prosecution argued is likely why Ms Zachry wanted to fire her.
Gutierrez-Reed is facing involuntary manslaughter charges in the fatal shooting of Ms Hutchins. Actor and producer Alec Baldwin is also facing involuntary manslaughter charges related to the shooting. His trial will begin on 9 July.
The prosecution seeks to prove that Gutierrez-Reed was negligent in her duties on set and that proper protocol was in place during the investigation of the shooting. The state claims the armourer was “sloppy” and had left guns unattended on the set.
Gutierrez-Reed is also facing an evidence tampering charge for allegedly asking a friend to hide cocaine for her while police were investigating the shooting.
Gutierrez-Reed faces up to three years in prison if she is convicted.
‘Rust’ director Joel Souza testifies
Joel Souza, the director on the film “Rust,” has been called by the state to testify in the involuntary manslaughter trial of Hannah Gutierrez-Reed.
Mr Souza is asked about his relationship with Halyna Hutchins and recalls how he met her, and praised her style and her prestigious training through the American Film Institute.
Mr Souza was also shot on the day Ms Hutchins was killed. The bullet exited Ms Hutchins’ body and struck Mr Souza.
‘Rust’ director recalls moment Halyna Hutchins was shot
Joel Souza, the director on the film “Rust,” said he remembered watching Halyna Hutchins be lowered to the ground immediately after she was shot.
He said he was confused and could not figure out what had happened. He had also been shot as the bullet passed through Ms Hutchins and hit him in the abdomen.
Mr Souza said he thought perhaps Ms Hutchins had just been startled by the gun, but then he saw the blood pooling on her back and realised something terrible had occured.
He said he recalled Hannah Gutierrez-Reed yelling “I’m sorry, I’m sorry Joel” in the aftermath of the incident.
‘It’s not possible’ : ‘Rust’ director says he refused to believe he’d been shot by a live round on set
Joel Souza, the director on the film “Rust,” said he argued with medical staff at a hospital after he and Halyna Hutchins were shot on the set of the film.
“It’s not possible, you don’t understand, it’s not possible,” he recalled telling medical staff after they said he’d been wounded by a real bullet.
Live rounds are never supposed to be on a film set. He said he did not believe it was a real bullet until he was showed an X-ray of his back showing the bullet.
Defence questions ‘Rust’ director
Jason Bowles, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s defence attorney, is cross-examining “Rust” director Joel Souza.
Mr Bowles asked Mr Souza if he knew that Screen Actors Guild guidlines put the responsibility of maintaining safety on set on the assistant director if an armourer is not present.
Mr Souza said he was not familiar with the rule, and noted that — as a director and screenwriter — he is not a member of SAG.
Hotel worker who had access to Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s hotel room, testifies
Emery Chacon, a hotel worker who had access to Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s hotel room, has been called by the state to testify.
He worked at the hotel where Gutierrez-Reed was staying while she was working on “Rust.”
Mr Chacon said he saw pistol ammunition in her room on the times when he was inside the room.
The defence then began its cross-examination.
The defence pushed Mr Chacon on his relationship with Gutierrez-Reed. He admitted that he had feelings for her that she did not reciprocate.
Wyatt Mortenson, wrangler and stuntman, is called to testify
The state has called Wyatt Mortenson, who worked to maintain the horses on the set of “Rust” and acted as a stuntman and extra.
The prosecutor asked him if he recalled an incident in which a rifle was lost on set.
He said he had, and recalled that a rifle had been lost after a scene was filmed.
Mr Mortenson also said he recalled seeing guns and ammunition being left unattended on set.
He said it seemed “unusual” to see guns and ammunition being left unattended.
The court breaks for lunch
The court has recessed for lunch.
The trial will resume at 1:10 local time, 3:10 EST.
‘Rust’ medic called to testify after break
The trial has resumed after a lunch break.
Cherilyn Schafer, a medic in the film industry who worked on the set of “Rust,” has been called to testify.
She told the prosecutor that Hannah Gutierrez-Reed did not secure weapons on set the way she was used to seeing armourers secure weapons.
Ms Schafer said she only saw Gutierrez-Reed check weapons “sometimes,” and said that a “good majority of the time” actors maintained their weapons even after scenes had concluded filming.
‘Rust’ medic says safety meetings on set were ‘rare'
Cherilyn Schafer, a medic who worked on the set of “Rust,” said that safety meetings were rare on the set.
Previous testimony from another crewmember said that on a typical production, safety meetings occurred daily, if not more.
She said the meeting was called on the day that a camera crew walked off set. That was also the day Halyna Hutchins was shot on set.
‘Rust’ medic recalls the moment Halyna Hutchins was shot
Cherilyn Schafer, a medic who worked on “Rust,” struggled to hold back tears while describing the moment Halyna Hutchins was shot.
She was outside of the church when she heard the gunshot, and then grabbed her bag and rushed into the church.
“I heard medic emergency over the radio,” she said.
She said Ms Hutchins said she couldn’t feel her legs, which indicated she’d suffered some kind of spinal injury. She then saw the blood on her back, and used shears to open Ms Hutchins’ jacket to see if she could locate her wound.
Ms Schafet said she called for ambulances and a helicopter to assist, and told everyone who wasn’t necessary to be in the church to leave.