Summary

  • Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who was in charge of weapons on the Rust film set, is on trial after actor Alec Baldwin fatally shot a cinematographer

  • Gutierrez-Reed is accused of involuntary manslaughter and evidence tampering charges relating to the death of Halyna Hutchins in 2021

  • Hutchins, aged 42, was killed after a gun Baldwin had been rehearsing with went off on set

  • Prosecutors say Gutierrez-Reed acted recklessly when loading the gun and failed to ensure only dummy bullets were used in the weapon

  • Gutierrez-Reed denies the charges

  • Baldwin has also been charged with involuntary manslaughter and will face a separate trial

  • You can watch the court proceedings live by pressing the play button at the top of this page

Live Reporting

Edited by Brandon Livesay & Lisa Lambert

  1. What are live rounds, blanks and dummy bullets?

    Samantha Granville
    Reporting from court

    I'm here in Sante Fe, New Mexico where the trial for Rust armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is about to begin.

    We'll be hearing several key terms throughout the trial, so let's go through them now.

    • Live: primer, powder, actual projectile. A real ammunition round (a bullet)
    • Blanks: primer, powder, felt disc, crimped top, no projectile. They make the sound of a real round but a bullet is not actually fired out of the gun
    • Dummy: no primer, no powder, no projectile. It’s a piece of metal or plastic shaped to the exact dimensions of a real round and is used for training drills for things like loading and unloading

  2. Rust trial starts

    Brandon Livesay
    US reporter

    Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the start of the trial of Rust armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed.

    This is the first trial involving Alec Baldwin’s fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on 21 October, 2021 - which happened during rehearsals on the Rust film set in Sante Fe.

    Gutierrez-Reed, who was in charge of weapons on set, has been charged with involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence.

    Prosecutors allege Gutierrez-Reed mistakenly brought live ammunition on set and a live round was loaded into the gun that killed Hutchins.

    She has pleaded not guilty.

    Our reporters Emma Vardy and Samantha Granville will be in the courtroom today bringing you the latest updates, and you will be able to watch a live stream from the court by pressing the play button at the top of this page.

    It's set to start at 10:30 ET (15:30 GMT), so stick with us.