The gunsmith on the set of Alec Baldwin’s Western is asking the court to throw out the manslaughter verdict or order a new trial, alleging suppression of evidence and prosecutorial misconduct.
Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot and killed on the set of the film “Rust” near Santa Fe in October 2021. Baldwin, the film’s lead actor and co-producer, was pointing the gun at Mme Hutchins during a rehearsal on the set when the gun went off. She was killed and director Joel Souza was injured.
In a motion filed in court Tuesday, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s attorney argued that her case should be reexamined because prosecutors failed to share evidence that might have been favorable to her.
Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer abruptly ended Baldwin’s trial last week on manslaughter charges because of police and prosecutorial misconduct — the withholding of evidence from the defense.
The gunsmith’s lawyer is trying to use the decision to reopen his client’s case.
Kari Morrissey, lead prosecutor in the Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed cases, said her written response would be filed in court next week, declining further comment.
Baldwin’s trial ended abruptly when the court heard that ammunition had been brought to the sheriff’s office in March by a man who claimed it might be linked to M’s death.me Hutchins.
Prosecutors then argued that they considered the ammunition irrelevant and unimportant to the case. But Baldwin’s lawyers said the prosecution had “buried” the evidence and filed a motion to dismiss the case.
Gunsmith Gutierrez-Reed was convicted by a jury in March. Judge Marlowe Sommer later imposed the maximum sentence of 18 months in prison. Gutierrez-Reed already has an appeal pending in a higher court regarding the manslaughter verdict.
Prosecutors accused Gutierrez-Reed of unwittingly bringing live ammunition onto the set of “Rust,” where it was expressly prohibited, and of failing to follow basic firearms safety rules.