Sheriff’s Office Believes Alec Baldwin Fired Real Bullet

DA not ruling out charges against Baldwin or other movie workers from scene of ‘Rust’ shooting

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Santa Fe County Sheriff’s investigators believe actor and producer Alec Baldwin fired a bullet from a Colt .45 caliber revolver on the set of his new Western, Rust, last week, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza.

But they won’t know for sure until forensics and ballistics reports come back from FBI headquarters in Quantico, Virginia, Sheriff Adan Mendoza announced at a chaotic news conference in Santa Fe Wednesday morning attended by dozens of local, national and international reporters.

The sheriff’s announcement at least partially answers one of the primary questions looming in the aftermath of the shooting at Bonanza Creek Ranch: What was in the gun Baldwin fired?

Mendoza drew a distinction during the news conference between “dummy rounds,” “blanks” and bullets, saying all three had been collected at the scene and that it had been the latter fired by Baldwin—an assertion borne out in a newly released search warrant affidavit.

Still unanswered: Will anyone be charged with a crime in connection with the shooting? Baldwin? Assistant Director Dave Halls, who handed the star the firearm, which was meant to be used as a prop? Hannah Gutierrez, the movie set’s armorer, who also handled the gun?

Responding to a question from a reporter, First Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies, who spoke at the news conference alongside Mendoza, said it’s too early to say whether any actions on set that led up to the shooting amount to criminal negligence.

“All options are on the table,” Carmack-Altwies said. “No one has been ruled out at this point.”

The investigation is ongoing, Carmack-Altwies and Mendoza said, including evidence processing and interviews. Mendoza said he “hopes” to interview Baldwin again.

Mendoza said his detectives have thus far collected about 600 items of evidence, including about 500 rounds of ammunition and the “lead bullet” recovered from Souza’s shoulder, which is believed to be the same projectile that killed Hutchins.

Among the evidence collected: the Colt Baldwin fired, another .45 caliber pistol—which Mendoza said was likely inoperable—and a plastic prop pistol. Those are the three guns Gutierrez had laid out on a rolling cart in advance of Baldwin and others rehearsing a scene inside a church structure at Bonanza Ranch in which Baldwin was to point a gun in the direction of a camera.

Also on Wednesday, officials released a third search warrant affidavit filed in Santa Fe Magistrate Court in connection with the investigation.

Sworn out by Sheriff’s Det. Alexandria Hancock, the document seeking to search a truck on the movie set provides additional details and a summary of an interview with Gutierrez.

On Thursday afternoon, assistant director Halls retrieved a “prop gun” from a rolling cart and handed it to Baldwin, according to the affidavit.

“Cold gun,” Halls shouted, indicating the gun didn’t contain live ammunition.

Shortly after, Baldwin fired a shot that struck Hutchins, 42, in the chest and Souza, 48, in the shoulder. Hutchins died at an Albuquerque hospital; Souza was treated and released in Santa Fe.

Hancock’s affidavit appears to back up Mendoza’s belief that there was a bullet in the gun Baldwin fired.

It also appears firearm safety protocol on set wasn’t strictly followed.

According to the affidavit, Guiterrez picked up the gun after the shooting so Halls could look inside. He told a deputy he could remember seeing at least four “dummy” casings, indicated by a hole on the side, and one casing without a hole.

Halls also told the deputy that prior to rehearsing with firearms, he typically checks the barrel for obstructions, Gutierrez releases the cylinder from the frame, spins the drum and Halls says “cold gun.”

When Gutierrez showed him the firearm prior to the shooting, Halls said he could only remember seeing three rounds and should’ve checked each of the slots in the drum, but didn’t. He also couldn’t recall if Gutierrez spun the drum.

Mendoza said his office suspects there were additional live rounds on set, but testing by the FBI has yet to confirm that. He wouldn’t comment on why bullets were on set or who was responsible for bringing them there.

No charges at this time, Carmack-Altwies said, adding that the six-day-old investigation was still in an intermediate or preliminary stage.

The day before the shooting, a half-dozen camera crew walked off the set to protest working conditions, according to the search warrant.

Safety protocols including gun inspections weren’t strictly adhered to and at least one of the camera operators complained about gun safety to a production manager the weekend before, crew members said, according to a Los Angeles Times story.

That same weekend, Baldwin’s stunt double accidentally fired two rounds after being told that the gun was “cold,” the Times reported.

Ballistics and forensics analyses have yet to be completed, and the Sheriff’s Office has more interviews to conduct. Mendoza said there were 16 people in the vicinity of the shooting, and they’ve all been interviewed. But there were about 100 people on set and those interviews are ongoing.

Mendoza said safety issues will be addressed in interviews.

After Mendoza and Carmack-Altwies read prepared remarks—including condolences to Hutchins’ and Souza’s families—reporters from around New Mexico and far beyond shouted questions over one another through the cold air.

Mendoza parried many of the questions, saying he couldn’t comment because his investigation was ongoing. In several instances, both he and Carmack-Altwies were asked to describe their feelings about the incident.

Neither took the bait, though Mendoza at one point said the film industry has generally operated safely and responsibly in Santa Fe County, but that there had been “complacency on this set,” referring to Rust.

Earlier this week, the American Film Institute announced a scholarship for female cinematographers in honor of Hutchins.