‘Rust’ Armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed to Be Sentenced April 15
Hannah Gutierrez Reed, the “Rust” armorer convicted last week in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, will be sentenced on April 15, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Gutierrez Reed faces a maximum of 18 months in prison for involuntary manslaughter. A jury in Santa Fe, N.M., found her guilty after a two-week trial, in which prosecutors argued that her negligence led to “astonishing” failures of safety.
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Gutierrez Reed was responsible for the firearms on set. She accidentally loaded a live bullet into Alec Baldwin’s vintage Colt revolver, which went off, killing Hutchins and wounding the film’s director, Joel Souza. Baldwin, who has denied pulling the trigger, faces his own criminal trial for involuntary manslaughter in July.
Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer ordered Gutierrez Reed taken into custody following the verdict last week, noting the seriousness of the case.
“It’s a death,” the judge said.
Gutierrez Reed is being held at the Santa Fe County Adult Detention Facility.
The jury acquitted her of a separate charge of tampering with evidence, which would have added another 18 months to her sentence exposure.
In an interview with Court TV last week, special prosecutor Kari Morrissey said she would consult with the victims before deciding on what sentence to seek.
“I’m going to have to confer with the Hutchins family,” she told the outlet. “I will also confer with Mr. Souza, and try to come up with a recommendation for the court that’s reasonable under the circumstances and fair to Ms. Gutierrez.”
Before the trial, Morrissey offered leniency to Gutierrez Reed if she would plead guilty and accept responsibility for bringing live rounds to set. Gutierrez Reed refused the deal, and her lawyers said she would not confess to something she did not do.
Gutierrez Reed’s attorney, Jason Bowles, has said that he will appeal the verdict.
Mary Carmack-Altwies, the Santa Fe district attorney, told supporters in an email last week that her office was “one step closer” to obtaining justice in the case.
“The journey is not over,” she said. “There is more to do to make certain that justice is done. But we have made a huge step forward toward ensuring those responsible for Halyna’s tragic death are held accountable.”
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