An attorney for the armorer on the set of “Rust” says his client has no idea how the live round that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins wound up in a gun fired by the movie’s star, Alec Baldwin.
That lawyer, Jason Bowles, also said in a lengthy letter published by Variety that his client, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, remains “devastated and completely beside herself” in the aftermath of the tragedy.
“First Hannah would like to extend her deepest and most sincere condolences to the family and friends of Halyna. She was an inspirational woman in film who Hannah looked up to,” the letter said.
The statement also wished a speedy recovery to the movie’s director, Joel Souza, who was injured in the shooting.
“Hannah is devastated and completely beside herself over the events that have transpired,” her attorney continued.
Bowles also claimed some media reports have “falsely portrayed” and “slandered” Gutierrez Reed by claiming she had been careless in her duties.
“Ultimately this set would never have been compromised if live ammo were not introduced,” the letter to Variety said. “Hannah has no idea where the live rounds came from.”
According to Bowles, neither his 24-year-old client nor the “Rust” prop master saw anyone using the guns to fire live rounds. He said that is not something Gutierrez Reed would have allowed. The weapons — all of which were said to have been accounted for at all times — had purportedly been kept locked up overnight and during lunch breaks.
“Hannah still, to this day, has never had an accidental discharge,” the letter said. “The first one on this set was the prop master and the second was a stunt man after Hannah informed him his gun was hot with blanks.”
Bowles said that Gutierrez Reed was kept very busy on set and had a hard time staying focused solely on her responsibilities as an armorer.
“She fought for training, days to maintain weapons, and proper time to prepare for gunfire but ultimately was overruled by production and her department,” her lawyer claimed. “The whole production set became unsafe due to various factors, including lack of safety meetings. This was not the fault of Hannah.”
Gutierrez Reed and her legal team plan to further address the shooting and claims against her next week.
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