'Rust' armorer was 'sloppy' and left guns and ammo lying around movie set, prosecutors tell jurors

Opening statements began Thursday in the trial of "Rust" armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who is charged with involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence in the fatal on-set shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Hutchins, 42, was killed Oct. 21, 2021, during filming for “Rust” at the Bonanza Creek Ranch in Santa Fe County,New Mexico. Actor Alec Baldwin was rehearsing with a prop gun for a scene when the gun went off, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza.

The case centers on how a live round of ammunition found its way onto the film’s set and into the gun held by Baldwin. Although Baldwin maintains he did not pull the trigger, the gun fired a bullet.

Gutierrez-Reed, 26, was responsible for the weapons on the set of the Western film, which starred Baldwin. She faces up to three years in jail if convicted on both counts.

New Mexico special prosecutor Jason Lewis said in his opening statement that Hutchins' death was a result of Gutierrez-Reed's "sloppy" handling of the weapons on the set and that she failed to check the gun appropriately before bringing it to the film's set that day.

"We believe that it was the negligent acts and failures of the defendant ... that contributed to Ms. Hutchins' death," Lewis told the jurors.

Lewis said they plan to call several witnesses during the two-week trial, who will "describe the defendant's conduct as unprofessional and sloppy. You will hear testimony that she routinely left guns and ammunition lying around the set unattended and her gun safe and ammo cart were constantly disorganized."

Prosecutors showed multiple photos to the jury of what they claim were live rounds of ammunition in both the gun holster worn by Baldwin and in the boxes of ammunition