The case of manslaughter on the set of “Rust” continues: a prop master will be held accountable for the death of Galina Hutchins

Alec Baldwin was not cleared of responsibility for the death of a native of the USSR

The tragic story of the fatal accident that happened on October 22, 2021 in the state of New Mexico in the USA on the set of the western “Rust” was further continued. Then the Hollywood actor, producer of the film and performer of the role of the criminal Harland Rast Alec Baldwin accidentally shot the cameraman of the film. 42-year-old native of the USSR Galina Hutchins lost a lot of blood after being wounded in the chest. She was taken to the clinic by helicopter, but Galina could not be saved.

Galina Hutchins – nee Androsovich – was born in Kyiv in 1979 into a Soviet military family. Because her father served in the Arctic Circle, she grew up on a Soviet military base. According to Galina’s recollections, she was then surrounded by deer and nuclear submarines. She later studied international journalism at Taras Shevchenko State University in Kiev and took part in the filming of British investigative films. In 2015, Galina received a film education at the American Film Institute in Los Angeles, worked as a cinematographer on the films “Max Fist”, “Darling”, “Blind Fire”, “Mad Hatter”. In total, she took part in 32 film projects. She got married in the USA and gave birth to a son there.

The film’s props supervisor, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was responsible for the weapons on set. After evidence was presented in court that she had brought a box of live ammunition to the shoot that was accidentally mixed with blanks, the jury concluded that it was Gutierrez-Reed’s fault that manslaughter occurred. And now she could get up to three years in prison.

While preparing for the scene, Alec Baldwin pulled the trigger on his revolver, only to discover that it was loaded with a live round. As a result, cameraman Galina Hutchins was killed, and the film’s 48-year-old director, Joel Souza, was injured.

Alec Baldwin turns 65 on April 3. At the time of the tragedy he was 63 years old. He will soon appear in court on charges of manslaughter. His lawyers now have a trump card. It is connected with the above-mentioned circumstances of the appearance of a live cartridge on the set.

The court agreed with the prosecution’s arguments that the live cartridge was loaded into the revolver due to Gutierrez-Reed’s negligence. The tragic coincidence of circumstances is also taken into account. Alec Baldwin rehearsed with a prop gun in front of the camera, not knowing that it was not loaded with a blank cartridge.

In turn, the defendant’s lawyer believes that prosecutors do not have significant evidence that Gutierrez-Reed is the only culprit in the death of Galina Hutchins. In his opinion, they are trying to blame all the sins on his client.

The film’s director, Joel Souza, a witness in the case who was wounded in the collarbone and discharged from the hospital the day after the tragedy, told the court that after the shooting, Gutierrez-Reed asked him for forgiveness several times.

While the process is ongoing, filming has been stopped. However, in 2023, a purely Hollywood decision was made: work on “Rust” will resume, and the husband of the late Matthew Hutchins will become the executive producer of the film. This will be a tribute to the memory of the deceased Galina.

Events in “Rust” take place in the 19th century. The grandson of criminal type Harland is accused of accidental murder. The guy will face severe punishment. A grandfather travels to Kansas to rescue his grandson from prison to save him from possible execution.