Prosecutors ask ‘Rust’ movie armorer be sentenced to maximum sentence of 18 months in prison
By Taylor Romine, CNN
(CNN) — Prosecutors in the case against “Rust” armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed are asking she be sentenced to 18 months in prison – the maximum sentence in the involuntary manslaughter charge she was found guilty of – arguing she has demonstrated a “complete and total failure to accept responsibility for her actions,” according to a court document filed Friday.
Gutierrez Reed was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in March in relation to the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Hutchins was killed in October 2021 by a live round of ammunition fired from a prop gun held by actor Alec Baldwin on the set of “Rust.” She was also acquitted of a separate charge of evidence tampering.
Gutierrez Reed, who was responsible for firearm safety and storage on the movie’s set, is set to be sentenced Monday. Along with facing the maximum time in prison, Gutierrez Reed also faces a $5,000 fine as part of the sentence.
She was the first person to stand trial in a case that highlighted the movie industry’s safety standards – and this specific set’s violations of them. During the trial, prosecutors argued Gutierrez Reed repeatedly violated safety protocol on set and acted negligently and without caution in performing her duties as armorer, and that her actions ultimately led to Hutchins’ death.
Like Gutierrez Reed, Baldwin, who was holding the weapon, is now also facing an involuntary manslaughter charge in Hutchins’ death.
Special prosecutors in New Mexico in a recent legal filing claimed Baldwin’s behavior on set contributed to “safety compromises” that led to the fatal shooting. The filing was in response to Baldwin’s team asking in March to have the indictment against him dismissed.
In January, Baldwin pleaded not guilty to an involuntary manslaughter charge in the shooting.
In a sentencing memorandum filed earlier this week, Gutierrez Reed’s attorney requested a conditional discharge as she lacked a prior criminal history and has a “record of prior good works.”
CNN has sought comment from Gutierrez Reed’s attorney.
The special prosecutor’s office cited summaries of some of her jailhouse calls as one of the reasons why Gutierrez Reed should be given the maximum sentence.
In the calls, prosecutors say she blamed Hutchins’ death on the set medic and paramedics and claimed the judge and special prosecutor’s office conspired against her, along with calling the jurors derogatory names. Based on the timeline of one of the jailhouse calls, the special prosecutors also suspect Gutierrez Reed drank alcohol, which would have been a violation of her release, they said.
CNN has asked the prosecutor’s office for the full transcripts and recordings of the calls.
Gutierrez Reed is also facing an unrelated charge of unlawful carrying of a firearm in a licensed liquor establishment after she snuck a gun into a bar and then made a video about it in the bathroom, the court filing says. The case is still pending, according to court records.
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