The manslaughter case against Alec Baldwin has taken center stage, featuring damning testimony that has captivated public attention. Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the young “Rust” armorer charged alongside Baldwin, provided testimony that painted a picture of a production fraught with safety concerns and indifference.

Gutierrez-Reed, tasked with overseeing the firearms used on set, revealed a series of failures that culminated in the fatal incident that claimed the life of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Gutierrez-Reed’s testimony revealed the lack of seriousness Baldwin and the production team exhibited towards firearm safety. Baldwin, who juggled the roles of actor and producer, allegedly spent much of the firearm training sessions distracted, engaging in activities unrelated to the task at hand such as texting, FaceTiming his family, and having his assistant shoot videos for Instagram.

WATCH:

Despite Gutierrez-Reed’s requests for additional training time, particularly for Baldwin, given his heavy involvement with guns in his role, her concerns were dismissed.

Before the start of production, Gutierrez-Reed conducted a training session for actors required to handle firearms, which Baldwin could not attend. One assistant director praised the session, noting, “I was very impressed by the training session,” as Gutierrez-Reed ensured actors were proficient with gun handling and firing blanks.

Gutierrez-Reed also provided a specialized session for Baldwin, saying, “I walked in, and I said, ‘All right, Alec. I’m going to be your armorer. We’re going to go over how to shoot all your weapons, how to load them, how to make them safe, and we’re going to make sure that you really know — that you look like you know what you’re doing.’” However, Baldwin was distracted during the training, engaging with his phone and social media.

Gutierrez-Reed requested additional training time for Baldwin due to his role’s demands and expressed her concern over his proficiency with a cross-draw. “Particularly with Alec, just because his role is so gun-heavy, and I wanted to make sure he was familiar with his weapon,” and, “I told them that he needed more time to practice his cross-draw because I didn’t want him to have complications with it on filming day.” Unfortunately, she did not receive the additional training time requested.

Upon being summoned by first assistant director Dave Halls through a walkie-talkie, Gutierrez-Reed made her way to a church set situated at the periphery of the ranch’s simulated Western town, where she found Halls in conversation with director of photography Halyna Hutchins and director Joel Souza inside a pew, engaged in discussions regarding the day’s agenda.

That particular morning witnessed a mass departure of the majority of the camera team in protest over their work conditions, leaving the rest of the crew in a frenzied state. Gutierrez-Reed recounted her exchange with Halls during her December 2022 testimony to the Occupational Health and Safety Bureau of New Mexico, stating, “I told him I needed a weapons check, and he said, ‘We don’t have time,’” in reference to Halls.

Approximately two hours after its storage, cleaning, and loading by Gutierrez-Reed, the firearm discharged a live round, fatally striking the 42-year-old cinematographer Hutchins in the chest and also wounding Souza.

Further complicating matters, Gutierrez-Reed described being overwhelmed by her dual roles on set, which compromised her ability to manage the firearms effectively. She detailed instances where her safety recommendations were ignored and her requests for additional support were denied, creating a perfect storm that led to the tragic shooting.

The prosecution’s case hinges on proving Gutierrez-Reed’s responsibility for the live ammunition that ended up in the gun Baldwin used. Evidence, including images from the set and Gutierrez-Reed’s own phone, suggests that live rounds were present on multiple occasions, raising questions about the source of the fatal bullet.

Text messages between Gutierrez-Reed and her father about acquiring Colt .45 ammunition further suggest her possible involvement in bringing live rounds onto the set.