Dave Halls, Alec Baldwin’s assistant director, revealed to investigators that he didn’t examine every barrel of his rifle before handing it to him on the set of Rust last week, but that he’should have.’
The shocking statement was made in a search warrant issued by the Sante Fe County Sheriff’s Department on Wednesday afternoon after it was unsealed.
Gutierrez-Reed, 24, allegedly handed him the handgun and stated he usually unlocks it,’spins the drum’ to show him the ammo, and then deems it safe.
He stated on Thursday that he ‘couldn’t remember’ if she twisted the weapon and that all he remembered seeing were three false bullets with a hole on the side of their cartridges.
‘David said when Hannah showed him the firearm before continuing rehearsal, he could only remember seeing three rounds. ‘He advised he should have checked them all but didn’t and couldn’t recall if she spun the drum,’ the search warrant says.
Baldwin was given the gun, which he used to shoot Halyna Hutchins and Joel Souza. Hutchins died, and Souza was admitted to the hospital.
Following that, Halls returned the rifle to Gutierrez-Reed and instructed her to open it for him. They soon learned there were four dummy rounds and one live round that had already been completed.
‘After the accident, Halls picked up the firearm from a pew inside the church and took it to the armorer. Hannah then was told to open the gun so he could see what was inside.
‘He said he could only remember seeing at least four dummy casings with the hole in the side, and one without the hole.
‘He said this round did not have the “cap" on it and was just the casing. David advised the incident was not a deliberate act,’ the search warrant reads.
The warrant also describes how Hannah Gutierrez-Reed said there never being ‘any live rounds’ on set.
‘Hannah advised that she checked the ‘dummies’ and ensured “they were not hot rounds". ‘She said as the crew broke for lunch, the firearms were taken back and secured inside a safe on a prop truck on set.
‘During lunch, she said the ammo was left on a cart on the set and not secured.
‘After lunch, [property manager] Sarah Zachary pulled the firearms out of the safe inside the truck and handed them to her.
‘She advised there are only a few people that have access and the combination to the safe.
‘Hannah advised that she handed the gun to Alec Baldwin a couple of times, and also handed it to David Halls.
‘Hannah said no live ammo is ever kept on set.’
The news comes less than an hour after prosecutors stated that ‘no one has been ruled out’ of criminal charges.
‘We’re going to continue interviewing getting the facts… he is an active part of this investigation we’re still investigating… no one has been ruled out,’ Mendoza said.
Sheriff Adam Mendoza of Santa Fe County said all three might face charges and are still being interviewed at a press conference on Wednesday.
It is too early to file charges, according to District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies, but ‘all possibilities are on the table at this moment.’
Baldwin shot a Pietta.45 long colt revolver, according to Mendoza. When they discovered the rifle, it had other ammunition in it, although it’s unknown what type of ammunition it was.
Hutchins was murdered by a lead bullet that was removed from Souza’s shoulder. Officers have retrieved the expended shell casing and are transporting it to the FBI lab in Quantico for further analysis.
‘Blanks, dummies, and live rounds’ make up the 500 rounds found on the movie set. Sheriffs wouldn’t specify how many of each were found or how the live rounds ended up in the wrong place.
According to a search warrant issued by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office last week, Gutierrez-Reed was the last person to handle the gun, leaving it unsecured on the cart alongside two other revolvers in the early hours of October 21.
It is at this point, the insider reveals, that a group of crew members took the weapons without the director and first director’s knowledge, and forgot to unload the firearm in question.
The post “ should have checked chamber but I didn’t’ – Rust Assistant Director admitted to sheriffs that he handed prop gun to Alec Baldwin without making sure it was safe" first appeared on Lindaikejiblog.
