Alec Baldwin’s defense attacks ‘Rust’ investigation on second day of trial

The defense of Alec Baldwin focused his efforts on questioning the police investigation into the fatal shooting on the set of “Rust” on Thursday, during the second day of the actor’s trial for involuntary manslaughter.

Alec Baldwin He was handling a .45-caliber Colt revolver during a tragic rehearsal in October 2021 in New Mexicowhen the gun discharged a bullet that killed the western film’s cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins, and wounded the director.

In front of the jury that will decide the fate of the Hollywood star, his lawyerAlex Spiro, questioned crime scene expert Marissa Poppell, who was in charge of the investigation at the time, suggesting that the work was not exhaustive and that there may even have been a lack of transparency in the case.

“Isn’t it true that you were just trying to get this over with so prosecutors could focus on Alec Baldwin?” Spiro asked.

“No,” Poppell replied, who experienced tense moments on the stand during the long questioning by Spiro, a prestigious lawyer whose clients include Elon Musk and Jay-Z.

The criminalist originally claimed that they opened “every box” at the headquarters of the prop weapons supplier for the tape in search of evidence, however under pressure from Spiro he qualified the inspection by calling it “reasonable.”

The questioning followed the narrative laid out by Spiro on Wednesday during his opening arguments, when he implied that investigators and prosecutors deliberately focused on Baldwin.

“Instead of trying to find the source of the fatal bullet, they focused on Mr. Baldwin,” he said then.

Another actor with real bullets

Witnesses on the second day of the trial spoke about the ammunition and the gun that took Hutchins’ life.

Poppell revealed that during the investigation they found live bullets in the prop car, in the box of bullets and cartridge belts belonging to Baldwin and Jensen Ankles, another actor who appeared in the western.

Live ammunition is not allowed on film sets.

The investigation into the case did not determine how the bullets reached Bonanza Creek Ranch, a traditional film location in Santa Fe where the cowboy movie was being filmed when tragedy struck.

For Poppell, the evidence suggested the bullets came onto the set from Hannah Gutierrez, the young gunsmith hired to oversee the props and weapons for “Rust.”

Alexandria Hancock, a detective on the case at the time who also testified Thursday, agreed when questioned by prosecutor Kari Morrissey.

Gutierrez was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter by the same Santa Fe court, and sentenced in April to 18 months in prison.

Alec Baldwin66, could face the same fate if the jury finds him guilty.

The “30 Rock” actor arrived at the courtroom in a dark suit and horn-rimmed glasses. With a controlled expression and mostly with his arms crossed, he watched the back-and-forth between the two legal teams.

Sitting behind him in a show of support were his wife Hilaria and his younger brother Stephen.

Weapon

Hutchins, a rising star, was 42 when she died on October 21, 2021. Of Ukrainian origin, she was married and had a son.

Alec Baldwin He has repeatedly said he did not pull the trigger. But an FBI report, which tested the Colt .45 revolver, contradicts that version.

The Prosecutor’s Office, which characterized Alec Baldwin The Italian police accused the gun’s manufacturer, Alessandro Pietta, of behaving “irresponsibly” and “without due regard for the safety of others” of a powerful movie star.

“Is the only way to fire this gun by pulling the trigger?” prosecutor Erlinda Ocampo Johnson asked.

“That’s the way to do it,” the Italian replied.

“Is there another way?” the lawyer insisted. “No,” Pietta said.

The gun was damaged during FBI testing, something Spiro says prevents them from refuting the investigation’s findings.

In any case, the lawyer included in his arguments that an actor “has the right” to pull the trigger on the set and that the task of checking the contents of the weapon falls to production security personnel such as gunsmiths and prop makers.

The trial is scheduled to end on July 19, after which the jury will enter into deliberations.