According to a new FBI forensic report, the gun used in last year’s deadly shooting on set of the movie “Rust” could not have been fired without the trigger being pulled. The new finding from the forensic report contradicts the account of actor Alec Baldwin. Baldwin had the gun in his hands at the time of the shooting.
Baldwin shot cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the movie set where he was a lead producer and actor. Baldwin has said that the gun fired accidentally, without him pulling the trigger, when it went off and a live bullet struck Hutchins, killing her. An attorney for Baldwin told ABC News the new report does not change Baldwin’s stance.
“The FBI report is being misconstrued,” said Luke Nikas, attorney for Alec Baldwin. “The gun fired in testing only one time — without having to pull the trigger — when the hammer was pulled back and the gun broke in two different places. The FBI was unable to fire the gun in any prior test, even when pulling the trigger, because it was in such poor condition.”
Hannah Gutierrez Reed was in charge of all the weapons on the “Rust” set. Her attorney said the new report contradicts Baldwin’s claim that he didn’t pull the trigger.
“These new filings demonstrate various production members’ attempts from the very beginning to shirk responsibility and scapegoat Hannah, a 24-year-old armorer, for this tragedy,” attorney Jason Bowles said in a statement to ABC News. “Hannah was tasked with doing two jobs including props assistant and the very important job as armorer but not given adequate time and training days to do so despite repeated requests or the respect required of the armorer’s position and responsibilities.”
Investigators will now focus on how a live round of ammunition may have made it onto the movie set. The local district attorney has yet to decide if charges will be pressed in the shooting. Detectives are still waiting on phone records from Alec Baldwin. It has been nearly nine months since the fatal shooting occurred.
