‘Rust’ Armorer Claims Six Errors by Judge in Appeal of Manslaughter Conviction
14.06.2024 - 00:31
/ variety.com
Gene Maddaus Senior Media Writer “Rust” armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed has claimed that the judge in her involuntary manslaughter trial made six errors, warranting reversal of her conviction in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Gutierrez Reed, 27, is serving an 18-month sentence at the Western New Mexico Correctional Facility in Grants, N.M. In a filing to the state’s Court of Appeals on Wednesday, defense attorney Jason Bowles cited issues with the jury instructions and the judge’s decision to allow “lay opinions” on Gutierrez Reed’s conduct as an armorer.
Alec Baldwin is set to face a trial on the same charge beginning on July 9 in Santa Fe, before Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer, who also handled Gutierrez Reed’s trial. Gutierrez Reed mistakenly loaded a live bullet instead of a dummy round into Baldwin’s gun, which then fired during preparation for a scene in the Western film. Baldwin is accused of negligently pointing the gun at the cinematographer and pulling the trigger.
A key issue in Gutierrez Reed’s appeal has also figured in Baldwin’s defense. Gutierrez Reed’s lawyers will argue that involuntary manslaughter requires “conscious disregard of a known risk” under appellate precedents, but that the jury instructions set a lower bar for conviction. The judge used the standard instructions for involuntary manslaughter in New Mexico, which state that the defendant “should have known” of the risk of their actions — not that they did know.
Baldwin’s lawyers have advanced a similar argument in attempting to throw out the grand jury indictment against him. Both defendants have asserted that it was unthinkable that live rounds could be on a movie set, and therefore they were unaware of the risk. The prosecution has
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