Alec Baldwin filed a lawsuit over the fatal shooting on the set of last year’s “Rust,” claiming the negligence of some of the film’s crew while trying to “clear his name.”
The lawsuit, which was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday, names the West’s first assistant director, armorer, ammunition supplier and prop master as defendants.
Baldwin’s cross-complaint follows a lawsuit filed last year by the film’s screenwriter, Mamie Mitchell. The civil lawsuit accused Baldwin of “playing Russian roulette” by pointing a Colt .45 revolver at the film’s cinematographer, Halina Hutchins, and accidentally shooting him dead. Director Joel Souza was also injured while filming in October 2021.
Luke Nikas of Alec Baldwin’s attorney, Quinn Emmanuel, said, “More than anyone else on that set, Baldwin has been unfairly identified as the perpetrator of this tragedy.” We are seeking to clear his name and hold the mutual defendants accountable for their misconduct.”
Hamptons International Film Festival President Alec Baldwin attends the world premiere of the National Geographic documentary film “First Wave” at the Hamptons International Film Festival on October 7, 2021 in East Hampton, NY. increase.
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Hutchins was killed by a live bullet inside the gun, officials said. There were questions about how the live ammunition reached the New Mexico sets and prop guns, and whether the crew had taken appropriate safety precautions.
Those named in Baldwin’s lawsuit have denied responsibility amid an investigation into the shooting and other lawsuits.
Mamie Mitchell’s attorney, Gloria Allred, released a statement late Friday night in response to Baldwin’s lawsuit, saying, “Cross Claims has denied him since firing the fatal shot that killed Ms. Hutchins.” It is a shameful attempt to shift the blame onto others, as has been done by .
“[Baldwin] Everyone else is at fault and everyone else is at fault,” Allred continued. Baldwin appears to claim he’s the only one who’s really innocent… [Baldwin] In violation of industry protocol and common sense, we failed to verify that the gun contained no live ammunition. [He] can’t escape [his] Point your finger and take responsibility for this terrible tragedy [the] Point the finger at everyone else.
According to an affidavit in the search warrant, Dave Halls, the film’s first assistant director, shot Baldwin’s gun while declaring it a “cold gun” to inform the crew that the gun was being used without live ammunition. handed over to According to his affidavit, when he handed the gun to Baldwin, Halls reportedly told investigators he didn’t know it contained live ammunition.
Baldwin’s lawsuit alleges that film armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reid “failed to check bullets and guns carefully” and acted “recklessly.”
Gutierrez-Reed’s lawyers have previously said his client didn’t know where the live round came from and she wasn’t at the church where the rehearsal was taking place.
Earlier this year, Gutierrez-Reed sued Albuquerque prop houses PDQ Arm and Prop LLC for providing a live round set in a box that was supposed to contain only dummy rounds.
In an interview with ABC News days after the shooting, prop house owner Seth Kenney confirmed that the live rounds and other live round investigators found on set were from his company. I denied it.
“There’s no chance they came from PDQ or myself,” Kenny said. “When we ship dummy rounds, we rattle test them individually before shipping.”
Baldwin’s lawsuit further alleges that the film’s prop master, Sarah Zachri, failed to disclose that Gutierrez Reid “was a safety risk to those around her.”
The lawsuit alleges that Baldwin “suffered substantial damages” as a result of the defendants’ alleged negligence.
“He suffers physically and emotionally from the grief caused by these events. There is not a day that goes by that he does not think about the events that happened that day and is not distressed,” the complaint states. has also lost many job opportunities and associated income, for example he was fired from multiple jobs, apparently due to the Rust incident, and missed out on other opportunities.”
He is seeking an unspecified amount of damages, including compensation for damages that may arise from the Mitchell lawsuit.
After a year-long investigation into the shooting, the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office filed its report with the local district attorney last month.
Last month, the Hutchins family reached a settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit against the film’s producers, including Baldwin.
