Sheriff: Movie set showed ‘some complacency’ with weapons

By MORGAN LEE, SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN and CEDAR ATTANASIO

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Investigators said Wednesday that determination was “some complacency” successful however weapons were handled connected the movie acceptable wherever Alec Baldwin accidentally changeable and killed a cinematographer and wounded different person, but it’s excessively soon to find whether charges volition beryllium filed.

Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza noted that 500 rounds of ammunition — a premix of blanks, dummy rounds and unrecorded rounds — were recovered portion searching the acceptable of the Western “Rust.”

“Obviously I deliberation the manufacture has had a grounds precocious of being safe. I deliberation determination was immoderate complacency connected this set, and I deliberation determination are immoderate information issues that request to beryllium addressed by the manufacture and perchance by the authorities of New Mexico,” Mendoza told a quality league astir a week aft the shooting.

Authorities besides confirmed determination was nary footage of the shooting, which happened during a rehearsal.

Investigators judge Baldwin’s weapon fired a azygous unrecorded circular that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounded manager Joel Souza.

Detectives person recovered a pb projectile they judge the histrion fired past week. Testing is being done to corroborate whether the projectile taken from Souza’s enarthrosis was fired from the aforesaid agelong Colt revolver utilized by Baldwin. The FBI volition assistance with ballistics analysis.

Two different guns were seized, including a single-action revolver that whitethorn person been modified and a integrative weapon that was described arsenic a revolver, officials said.

Souza, who was lasting down Hutchins, told investigators determination should ne'er beryllium unrecorded rounds contiguous adjacent the scene.

“We fishy that determination were different unrecorded rounds, but that’s up to the testing. But close now, we’re going to find however those got there, wherefore they were determination due to the fact that they shouldn’t person been,” Mendoza said.

District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies said investigators cannot accidental yet whether it was negligence oregon by whom. She called it a analyzable lawsuit that volition necessitate much probe and analysis.

“It volition instrumentality galore much facts, corroborated facts, earlier we tin get to that transgression negligence standard,” she said.

Investigators said they planned to travel up connected reports of different incidents involving misfires with guns connected the set.

The shooting has baffled Hollywood professionals and prompted calls to amended modulate firearms connected sets oregon adjacent prohibition them successful the property of seamless computer-generated imagery. Court records accidental that an adjunct manager grabbed the weapon from a cart and indicated the limb was harmless by yelling “cold gun.”

The film’s weapons specializer oregon armorer, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, said she checked dummy bullets connected the time of the shooting to guarantee that nary were “hot” rounds. She besides told a detective that portion the guns utilized for filming were locked up during a unit luncheon break, ammunition was near connected a cart unsecured, according to a hunt warrant released Wednesday up of the quality conference.

Gutierrez Reed told a detective that nary unrecorded ammo was ever kept connected the set.

Assistant manager David Halls, who handed the weapon to Baldwin earlier the shooting, said Gutierrez Reed typically opened the hatch of the weapon and spun the drum, though helium couldn’t callback if she did that earlier the shooting. He said helium lone remembered seeing 3 rounds successful the gun, according to the warrant.

After the shooting, Halls took the weapon to Gutierrez and said helium saw 5 rounds successful the gun, astatine slightest 4 of them were “dummy” rounds indicated by a spread connected the broadside and a headdress connected the round. Halls said determination was besides a casing successful the weapon that did not person the headdress and did not person the spread indicating it was a dummy, the warrant said.

Halls “advised the incidental was not a deliberate act,” according to the warrant, which was issued Wednesday successful bid to hunt a motortruck that was utilized connected the set.

Baldwin, 63, who is known for his roles successful “30 Rock,” “The Departed” and “The Hunt for Red October” on with his content of then-President Donald Trump connected “Saturday Night Live,” has described the sidesplitting arsenic a “tragic accident.”

The weapon Baldwin utilized was 1 of 3 that the armorer had placed connected a cart extracurricular the gathering wherever a country was being rehearsed, according to tribunal records.

The accumulation of “Rust” was beset by workplace disputes from the commencement successful aboriginal October. Hours earlier the shooting, respective camera unit members walked disconnected the acceptable amid discord implicit moving conditions, including information procedures.

Baldwin successful his relation arsenic histrion appeared improbable to beryllium held criminally oregon civilly liable for the tragedy. As a producer, however, helium is among a agelong database of associates connected the movie who could look immoderate benignant of liability.

Concerns person been raised astir Halls’ information grounds by colleagues connected 2 erstwhile productions. Halls has not returned telephone calls and email messages seeking comment.

Rust Movie Productions, the accumulation company, says it is cooperating with authorities and conducting its ain interior reappraisal of procedures with the accumulation unopen down.