Alec Baldwin’s recklessness led to on-set ‘Rust’ shooting, court hears

Prosecutors said Alec Baldwin broke the 'cardinal rules of firearm safety' when he fired a gun as he rehearsed in front of a camera, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

As opening statements began Wednesday in the long-awaited Rust trial of Alec Baldwin, prosecutors and defence lawyers tried to paint him in different lights — as a safety-negligent leader, and an innocent actor playing a part.

Baldwin, 66, is on trial in Santa Fe, N.M., for involuntary manslaughter over the October 2021 on-set shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Hutchins, 42, was struck and killed by a single “live round” fired from Baldwin’s gun as he rehearsed in front of a camera. Rust writer and director Joel Souza was also injured in the incident.

Baldwin and his lawyers have repeatedly insisted the firing was accidental, and that real ammunition should have never been brought onto the set. Regardless, prosecutors said Baldwin was reckless and broke the “cardinal rules of firearm safety.”

Baldwin, who has pleaded not guilty, is the star and a co-producer of the western drama Rust. He could face up to 18 months in prison if found guilty of involuntary manslaughter.

“When someone plays make-believe with a real gun in a real-life workplace, and while playing make-believe with that gun, violates the cardinal rules of firearm safety, people’s lives are in danger and someone could be killed,” prosecutor Erlinda Ocampo Johnson told the 16-member jury.

Johnson called the case “simple” and “straightforward.”

The courtroom was packed with spectators and members of the media, with Baldwin’s wife Hilaria, his brother Stephen, and his older sister Elizabeth Keuchler also seated in the gallery.