Imprisoned Rust Armorer Wants Conviction Overturned Following Alec Baldwin Trial Dismissal

Implications of dropping charges against actor Alec Baldwin In the Rust The filming process has now extended beyond his high-profile case. According to a report from Variety, Lawyers for Hannah Gutierrez Reed, the film's gunsmith, have filed an urgent motion to overturn her involuntary manslaughter conviction or grant her a new trial.Gutierrez Reed is currently serving 18 months in a New Mexico prison in the tragic shooting that left Rust Cinematographer Halina Hutchins dies.

On October 21, 2021, Hutchins was killed on the set of Baldwin’s Western Project when the gun the actor was holding fired a live round. The film’s director, Joel Souza, was struck by the same bullet. Baldwin claims he did not pull the trigger on the gun, which should have held a blank, when it fired. Gutierrez-Reed was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in March, and her attorneys are now claiming that the prosecutors’ misconduct that led to Baldwin’s case being dismissed should also apply to her. In their filing, they allege:

Last week, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed Baldwin’s manslaughter case because prosecutors had significantly failed to disclose evidence. In particular, prosecutors failed to disclose that authorities had collected ammunition from the group, which appeared to have included live ammunition similar to the one that killed Hutchins. Sommer cited this incident as one of several procedural failures that prevented Baldwin’s attorneys from presenting a fully informed defense.

“The late discovery of this evidence at trial impeded the effective use of the evidence in a manner that affected the integrity of the underlying proceedings,” she said. The case was dismissed with prejudice, which legally means that New Mexico authorities cannot charge Baldwin again with the same crime.

Is it possible to release Hannah Gutierrez Reed?

In their motion, Gutierrez-Reed's attorneys argue that, like Baldwin, the case should be dismissed:

“Repeated discovery failures are not worth what Ms. Gutierrez-Reed deserves, and the impact has been devastating for her. She now sits in state prison serving an 18-month sentence based on what we now know was an unfair and unconstitutional proceeding by the state’s conduct. This court should not tolerate the state’s deplorable conduct.”

During Gutierrez-Reed’s sentencing, the judge chided her for her actions, which directly led to Baldwin’s gun being loaded with live ammunition. That could set a higher bar for overturning the conviction. In a video from Court TV, attorney Jessica Ehrlich breaks down the significance of prosecutorial misconduct. For Gutierrez-Reed, she says, “this case should at least be retried.”

As for the release RustFilming resumed last year and has already been completed. The producers are now hoping to have a distributor take over the film. The film also stars Travis Fimmel, Frances Fisher, Jake Busey, and Jensen Ackles.