On Monday, the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Workplace revealed the total scope of their investigation into the Rust capturing. The tragic accident in October 2021 left director Joel Souza injured and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
After months of investigation, Sheriff Adan Mendoza launched an announcement saying:
“At this time the sheriff’s workplace is releasing all recordsdata related to our ongoing investigation. The recordsdata are all associated to the Rust film set investigation and embrace lapel/sprint digicam footage from deputies and detectives, incident studies, crime scene photographs, examination studies, witness interviews, set video and employees photographs collected all through the course of this investigation.”
Associated: Alec Basically Claims TOTAL EXONERATION From Rust Investigation Findings
Amongst the hours of video included within the recordsdata, there’s footage of star Alec Baldwin drawing the F.lli Pietta 45 Lengthy Colt Revolver (the identical gun that later misfired) and pointing it on the digicam. Later physique cam footage from first responders exhibits the actor explaining his perspective to the cops, insisting he didn’t pull the set off nor did he know that there have been reside rounds within the gun. He advised them:
“I take the gun out and because the barrel clears, I flip and cock the gun and the gun goes off.”
In a number of the different video, Alec acknowledged that he was “not alright,” including that he was “fearful” about Halyna and asking after her situation.
Some footage depicts first responders treating Hutchins and Souza on the set earlier than they have been transferred to the hospital. There’s video of the director within the hospital begging “to know if Hutchins continues to be alive,” per Individuals. In his interview from the emergency room, he defined that armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed handed off the gun and that he believed she mentioned the weapon was “chilly” or “clear.” He mentioned:
“There was a bang — there was a louder bang than I’ve heard come from a clean earlier than.”
In Sheriff’s Det. Joel Cano’s abstract of his interview with Souza the day after the capturing, the director recalled the armorer standing over him after he was injured and “hysterically yelling ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry I’m sorry.’” Gutierrez-Reed, a controversial determine within the investigation, can also be seen within the footage within the moments after the capturing. Minutes after the incident, she advised police she was the movie’s armorer, “Or at the very least I used to be.” She advised one other officer:
“Welcome to the worst day of my life.”
She is later heard saying:
“I can’t consider Alec Baldwin was holding the gun. That’s so f**ked.”
In additional video, she requested to be taken someplace away from her coworkers, including:
“I simply wish to get the f**ok out of right here and by no means present my face on this business once more.”
She’s additionally heard calling herself a “f*****g failure” and advised the officer:
“I’m the one feminine armorer within the sport and I simply f**ked up my entire total profession.”
Interviews with the younger armorer have been included within the recordsdata launched; in a single, Gutierrez-Reed known as the Rust set “poisonous.” She admitted she “wasn’t conscious that the hammer within the gun was alleged to be pulled again within the scene and that she wished she checked it extra,” per The Los Angeles Instances.
Texts and emails from Gutierrez-Reed confirmed that she disregarded recommendation from her ammunition provider to keep away from “reside ammo” on the Nic Cage movie The Previous Method. Within the midst of the Rust investigation, she wrote a message saying police “don’t appear to consider me and the proof they’ve appears tampered with.”
Associated: Rust Armorer Sues Ammunition Provider Over Reside Rounds, Shares New Particulars
Correspondence from different crew members, together with propmaster Sarah Zachry, forged blame within the armorer’s course, going as far as to say Gutierrez-Reed was the one who “killed Halyna.” Nevertheless, in a single textual content message, Zachry claimed that Gutierrez-Reed wished to make use of pretend weapons on set, whereas Baldwin most well-liked the actual factor. She wrote:
“Alec by no means favored something pretend like weapons and even the rubber knife. He at all times wished the actual knife, however finally I gave him the rubber with out him understanding. He at all times wished his actual gun.”
In a textual content change with the actor days after the capturing, Zachry advised Alec that she was “praying” for him, to which he responded in thanks, later including:
“this sheriff’s dept nonetheless is not going to inform me that I gained’t be charged w one thing.”
Information from the Emmy winner’s cellphone, in addition to another supplies from the investigation, weren’t included in Monday’s launch. In Sheriff Mendoza’s assertion, he assured:
“As soon as these investigative parts are offered to the sheriff’s workplace we can full the investigation to ahead it to the Santa Fe District Legal professional for overview.”
We are going to proceed to comply with the case because it develops.
[Image via Lu Chau/MEGA/WENN]
