'Rust' Crime Scene Photos: Here's the Evidence the Jury Never Saw After Alec Baldwin Beat the Rap in Shocking Courtroom Twist
A judge dropped the charges against Baldwin because prosecutors failed to give the defense evidence about the live ammunition on the 'Rust' set.
July 13 2024, Published 12:21 a.m. ET
Less than two years after cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was killed in an accidental shooting on the set of Rust, a New Mexico judge dropped the involuntary manslaughter charges against the movie's lead, Alec Baldwin.
RadarOnline.com exclusively obtained case files containing photos and body camera footage showing officials combing the crime scene and collecting evidence in the aftermath of the infamous tragedy on October 21, 2021.
During a scene rehearsal inside a makeshift wooden church on the Santa Fe set, a prop gun in Baldwin's hand unexpectedly fired a live round that struck Hutchins and the film's writer and director, Joel Souza.
Baldwin's case was dismissed because the judge agreed the state failed to give the defense key evidence.
Among the documented evidence are photos of the Colt .45 the actor was holding, as well as the shell casing from the projectile that tore through Hutchins' chest and then became lodged in Souza's shoulder.
“So, I guess I’m gonna take this out, pull it and go, ‘Bang!’” Baldwin reportedly said before the gun went off.
Tragedy struck during a scene rehearsal inside a makeshift wooden church in Santa Fe.
Hutchins stumbled backwards and fell along with Souza, who shouted, "What the f— was that? That burns!” the Los Angeles Times reported. Baldwin apparently dropped the gun and responded, “What the f— just happened?”
As the crew rushed to the cinematographer's side, Hutchins reportedly said, “Oh, that was no good. No, that was no good. That was no good at all."
Body camera footage showed emergency medical officials rushing to help the wounded crew members as they lay on the ground of the church. Hutchins, a 42-year-old mom and wife, died at a hospital later that day, while Souza, 51, survived his injury.
Baldwin calmed his nerves with a cigarette after the incident.
As Hutchins was airlifted from the scene and Souza was loaded into an ambulance, Baldwin, 66, remained at the scene and told a Santa Fe County sheriff's deputy, "I was the one holding the gun."
The actor sat solemnly on the Western set and smoked a cigarette to calm his nerves while waiting to speak with investigators, still in costume from the rehearsal.
Hutchins died later that day after being airlifted for treatment.
Officials snapped photos of his blood-stained costume as well as the clothing Hutchins and Souza were wearing during the accidental shooting.
Some particularly chilling images reveal where emergency medical officials had to cut Hutchins' blood-soaked shirt open to tend to her fatal wounds.
Souza survived his injuries after the bullet became lodged in his shoulder.
Complicating things for investigators, however, the scene was also covered in fake prop blood. Further analysis had to be done by the FBI to determine which items contained actual blood.
Crime scene technician Marissa Poppell testified during Baldwin's trial that the red stain on the actor's garments turned out to be "movie blood."
Chilling evidence photos show where emergency officials had to cut Hutchins' shirt open to tend to her fatal wounds.
Investigators also collected papers from the scene rehearsal, including shot lists and scripts highlighting the eerie parallels between the plot of the movie and the now infamous on-set shooting.
The film is set in the 1880s and stars Baldwin as outlaw Harland Rust. It follows Rust's 13-year-old grandson, Lucas Hollister, as he is sentenced to be hanged for accidentally killing a rancher, and the pair goes on the run.
A crime scene technician confirmed in court on Thursday that Baldwin's clothing was covered in fake "movie blood."
When Souza was in the hospital, he told an officer that when he was struck by the bullet, the crew was rehearsing "a scene in the church where there was going to be a shootout among three characters."
The script photographed by investigators shows the scene was supposed to feature a confrontation between Rust and his nemesis, U.S. Marshal Wood Helm.
A script collected from the rehearsal highlights the eery similarities between the plot of 'Rust' and the on-set shooting.
In the scene, "Wood rolls over, trying to get up, and clutches a wounded shoulder" while Baldwin's character holds the notorious Colt .45., per the documents.
Rust, who is also apparently wounded in the sequence, tells the marshal of his grandson, "He ain't no killer."
Production was suspended after the horrific incident. Investigators were tasked with determining how a live bullet made its way into the prop gun, instead of a "dummy" round that should have been used — and why real ammunition was on the movie set in the first place.
Shot lists and other documents labeled 'Halyna' were collected as evidence.
Baldwin maintained that he never actually pulled the trigger of the gun, and said an assistant director told him the weapon was "cold" — signifying that it contained dummy rounds.
Ultimately, Baldwin and the movie's 26-year-old armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, were each charged with involuntary manslaughter in January of 2023.
Baldwin remained at the scene and waited to speak with investigators.
Prosecutors argued that Gutierrez-Reed was responsible for bringing the live ammunition to the set and failing to ensure that dummy rounds were used. A jury found the armorer guilty in March, and she was sentenced to 18 months behind bars.
The initial charges against Baldwin were dropped after the actor's attorneys questioned whether the prop gun from the incident was functioning properly.
A single live bullet was found in a tray of dummy rounds — distinguishable by its silver center.
The Colt .45, which had been broken during analysis, was sent for additional forensic testing and experts concluded the weapon could have only been fired by pulling its trigger. Baldwin was indicted on fresh involuntary manslaughter charges this past January.
His trial began on Wednesday, and Poppell testified for three days about the evidence she collected at the scene, which included a slew of weapons and ammunition.
She said both dummy rounds and live bullets were found in various locations linked to the production, and that it was nearly impossible for her to distinguish between the two simply by looking at them.
A slew of weapons and ammunition were found on the set, and live rounds were found in multiple locations linked to the production.
Further testing revealed that one live round had been found "in Mr. Baldwin's holster" and another in a box of ammo "that was being pulled from at the time to load the firearm," Poppell said.
She noted that in one photo, a single live bullet — distinguishable by its silver-plated center — could be seen amongst dozens of gold-centered dummy rounds. Empty slots in the tray suggested about a dozen rounds had already been pulled from the batch.
Another photo was taken of the shell casing from the bullet that killed Hutchins, showing a groove in its silver center where it was struck by the Colt .45's firing pin.
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Baldwin was asked to stand by while officials prioritized the wounded patients.
On Thursday, the defense filed a motion to dismiss the case on the grounds that prosecutors allegedly "buried" evidence regarding the live ammunition on set.
The filing said prosecutors were relying on the assumption that "the live rounds were brought to the set by the movie's armorer.”
Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the movie's armorer, was convicted on involuntary manslaughter charges because prosecutors said she was responsible for ensuring guns on set were safe.
But the defense said the state "concealed evidence potentially pointing to an external source of the live ammunition," referring to Rust prop firearm supplier Seth Kenney.
In a sudden development on Friday, Judge Marlowe Sommer agreed with the defense and granted the motion to dismiss the charges against Baldwin.
Judge Sommer told the court that despite prosecutors' "repeated" claims that investigators "were compliant with all of their discovery obligations," they "have continued to fail to disclose critical evidence to the defendant."
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A crime scene technician said one live round was found in the church — in Baldwin's holster.
"The state's discovery violation has injected a needless, incurable delay into the instant jury trial," the judge added.
When she announced the dismissal motion had been granted, Baldwin dropped his head and sobbed into his hands before hugging his defense attorneys. He then stood up and embraced his wife, Hilaria, who had been sitting behind him in the courtroom all week.
