Who Is To Blame? “Rust” Armorer Breaks Silence, “Has No Idea” Where Live Rounds Came From
Rust’s armorer Hannah Gutierrez is breaking her silence following the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the film’s set, and claims that she has no idea how the live rounds ended up in the firearm given to Alec Baldwin.
“Safety is Hannah’s No. 1 priority on set. Ultimately this set would never have been compromised if live ammo were not introduced. Hannah has no idea where the live rounds came from,” read the statement I issued by attorneys Jason Bowles and Robert Gorence, per PEOPLE.
“Hannah was hired on two positions on this film, which made it extremely difficult to focus on her job as an armorer. She fought for training, days to maintain weapons and proper time to prepare for gunfire but ultimately was overruled by production and her department,” the statement added. “The whole production set became unsafe due to various factors, including lack of safety meetings. This was not the fault of Hannah.”
RELATED: ‘Rust’ Armorer Allegedly Mishandled Guns On Previous Film Starring Nicolas Cage
As we reported, other crew members had reported that Gutierrez wasn’t safe on a previous movie set with Nicolas Cage.
According to Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza, Gutierrez is the focus of the investigation as she was one of the very few people who handled the gun prior to Baldwin shooting it.