KVSP Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins’ parents, sister to sue Alec Baldwin over ‘Rust’ shooting
Written by ABC Audio ALL RIGHTS RESERVED on February 9, 2023
(NEW YORK) — The parents and sister of Halyna Hutchins, the cinematographer killed in the Rust on-set shooting, plan to file a new lawsuit against Alec Baldwin and the film, according to the family’s attorney.
Their attorney, Gloria Allred, said she will be holding a press briefing Thursday at 2:30 p.m. ET to announce the filing of the lawsuit.
Hutchins was working as a cinematographer on the Western when Baldwin accidentally shot and killed her while he was practicing using a handgun on the New Mexico set in October 2021. Director Joel Souza was also injured in the shooting.
Her husband, with whom she shared a young son, previously reached a settlement in his wrongful death lawsuit against the producers of the film.
Baldwin and the film’s armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, have been charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter over the death Hutchins. They are scheduled to make their first court appearance virtually on Feb. 24.
Prosecutors claim that Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed failed to correct reckless safety violations in their roles as producer and armorer, respectively, and that Baldwin had his finger inside the trigger and it was pulled — contradicting his statements saying he never pulled the trigger.
Attorneys for Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed vowed to fight the charges.
First assistant director David Halls has already agreed to plead no contest for the charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon. The plea agreement is pending a judge’s approval, prosecutors said. A plea conference has been scheduled for March 8.
Several other lawsuits have also been filed in the wake of the fatal on-set shooting.
The film’s script supervisor, Mamie Mitchell, who is also represented by Allred, filed a civil suit in November 2021 accusing Baldwin of “playing Russian roulette” by pointing a Colt .45 revolver at Hutchins.
In November 2022, Baldwin filed a lawsuit over the fatal shooting, alleging negligence of several of the film’s crew members. The cross-complaint followed the lawsuit filed by Mitchell.
Gutierrez-Reed also filed a lawsuit early last year against the prop provider.
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