After death of camerawoman: trial against Alec Baldwin started

The star of films and series such as “The Hunt for Red October”, “Blue Jasmine” and “30 Rock” arrived at court accompanied by his wife Hilaria Baldwin (40). The 66-year-old did not respond to questions from reporters, as the broadcaster Court TV reported.

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The prosecution and defense must first select a dozen jurors and a handful of alternate jurors from a pool of candidates. The proceedings can then begin with the opening statements. The judge has scheduled just under two weeks for the trial. Cameras are permitted – the proceedings will be broadcast via live stream. Filmmakers, investigators and weapons experts are expected to take the stand. At the end of the day, twelve jurors must reach a verdict. If found guilty, Baldwin faces up to 18 months in prison.

Live ammunition instead of harmless cartridges

The charges stem from a shooting incident on the set of the western “Rust”. On October 21, 2021, lead actor Baldwin pulled out a revolver during rehearsals. But instead of harmless cartridges, live ammunition went off. The bullet pierced camerawoman Halyna Hutchins (42) and then hit director Joel Souza, who was standing behind her, on the shoulder. Hutchins – mother of a then nine-year-old son – died shortly afterwards; Souza escaped with minor injuries.

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Baldwin had claimed in interviews that he did not pull the trigger of the gun. At the arraignment in January, the actor and producer pleaded not guilty. However, according to a report by firearms experts, the trigger must have been pulled.

Handled weapons carelessly?

In the preliminary hearings, the defense attorneys prevailed with a motion that only Baldwin’s role as an actor was relevant in the proceedings. The prosecution, on the other hand, wanted to bring up Baldwin’s additional role as co-producer of the western – with the argument that in this role he had disregarded safety regulations, exerted pressure on filmmakers on the set and thus put them in danger.

The prosecutors, in turn, received the green light from the judge in advance to show the jury videos in which Baldwin handles weapons on set. They want to use this to show, among other things, that the actor acted recklessly during filming.

In a separate trial, gunsmith Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who was responsible for gun safety on the set of “Rust,” was found guilty of negligent homicide. She had loaded the gun, which contained live ammunition. In April, she was sentenced to the maximum sentence of 18 months in prison.