Actor Alec Baldwin returned to a Santa Fe, New Mexico, courtroom Friday morning as his manslaughter trial continued.
The case stems from the 2021 shooting on the movie set of “Rust,” in which Baldwin is accused of firing a live round that fatally struck the film’s director of photography, Halyna Hutchins, and injured director/writer Joel Souza.
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“Rust” armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, is expected to take the stand Friday, her attorney confirmed to Court TV. Gutierrez-Reed was convicted in March of involuntary manslaughter for the death of Hutchins and was sentenced to 18 months behind bars.
While it’s never guaranteed who will be called to the stand, Gutierrez-Reed’s attorney, Jason Bowles, said Thursday that she will be at the courthouse.
“The judge ruled [Gutierrez-Reed] didn’t have to testify, and I indicated Hannah would plead the Fifth,” he told Court TV’s Matt Johnson. “I don’t know how the judge intends to handle this yet.”
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News that Gutierrez-Reed will be called to the stand comes weeks after Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer denied the State’s request to use immunity to make Gutierrez-Reed testify about Baldwin’s culpability on set — questions that Special Prosecutor Kari Morrissey has said have nothing to do with her criminal conduct, but that of Baldwin.
Morrissey asked the court to grant a motion that would hold Gutierrez-Reed in contempt of court and possibly request additional jail time should she refuse to answer the State’s questions.
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