Armourer Sent To 18 Months After Being Found Guilty In The “Rust” Set Shooting

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, a Rust Armourer, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter and was given the maximum term of 18 months.

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot and killed on the “Rust” movie set by Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, an armorer. She received an 18-month prison sentence for involuntary manslaughter.

The 26-year-old armorer was found guilty in March, however she was not found guilty of tampering with evidence pertaining to Halyna Hutchins’ 2021 film set shooting.

On Monday, the case’s New Mexico judge, Mary Marlowe Sommer, imposed the harshest punishment imaginable. She emphasized how serious and brutal Gutierrez-Reed’s acts were, characterizing them as a direct cause of Hutchins’ death.

Judge Sommer addressed Gutierrez-Reed, saying, “On your own, a safe weapon became a deadly one. But Ms. Hutchins would still be here for you. A little child would have his mother, and a husband would have his spouse.

Actor Alec Baldwin’s gunshot during a rehearsal resulted in a live cartridge being fired rather than a dummy one, which led to the terrible occurrence. The prosecution claimed that in order to prevent the deadly tragedy, Gutierrez-Reed neglected to make sure the gun was correctly loaded with just simulated ammunition.

Prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey highlighted Gutierrez-Reed’s carelessness throughout the trial, characterizing her acts as “careless” and “thoughtless.” The prosecution said that Gutierrez-Reed failed to see that the ammo box on set contained real rounds mingled with fake rounds, one of which found its way into Baldwin’s gun.

In the wake of the shooting, Morissey continued, Guiterrez-Reed was less worried about the victims and more focused on her career.

Despite Guiterrez-Reed’s lack of testimony throughout the two-week trial, her attorney claimed the prosecution had not produced sufficient evidence to establish his client’s guilt for the fatal shooting.

Her attorney, Jason Bowles, told the jury that his client was unaware that actual bullets were present on the set, saying, “The (ammunition) boxes don’t matter, because we don’t know what was in them three or four days before.”

Bowles also laid the blame on Baldwin, claiming that by pointing the rifle at the film crew, he went off course. “Mr. Baldwin was not supposed to point the gun,” he stated. He claimed, “She was unaware that Mr. Baldwin would act in the manner that he did.”

Gutierrez-Reed spoke to the court before she was sentenced, expressing sympathy for the friends and family of the Hutchins.

“Just because the jury found me guilty, doesn’t mean I’m a monster. That’s what makes me human,” she sobbed.

Judge Sommer, however, chastised the armorer for not accepting full responsibility. The judge said, “I did not hear you take responsibility.”

Bowles promised to challenge the guilty decision.

Hutchins’ family was pleased with the decision and said they expected all those responsible for her death to face legal consequences. They underlined how dedicated they were to using the legal system to pursue justice.

Ms. Hutchins’ mother and sister filmed recordings in which they expressed their opinions from their homeland of Kyiv, Ukraine. Olga Solovey, the mother, mentioned in a translated statement that no one showed grief for her daughter when she passed away.

“I think it’s important that justice is served,” she said.