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Friday, September 27, 2024
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6 comments:
I think that it is truly crazy how this case has been going on for so long. I remember reading about the initial Alec Baldwin trial and events in my sophomore year of high school, and I think that it’s truly a failure of our system that it has taken until now for the case to resurface. The trial of Alec Baldwin and the other people involved in Rust is so full of issues on all sides, and could have been easily avoided with preventative measures and the avoidance of simple things like keeping live ammunition on a film set. A case of involuntary manslaughter on a set should never happen if the crew and actors are trained effectively and the props are thoroughly tested before the filming process. Aside from the glaring problems with the film industry and production in general, the original case was dismissed with prejudice because prosecutors withheld evidence from the defense. The legal issues within this case are a multitude and make me question some of my faith in the courts of America at all. Everything involved in the Baldwin case is upsetting, problematic, and avoidable with proper precautions and care.
I find this whole situation to be stupid and sad. I remember hearing about what had happened a few years ago, and thinking that while I was sure Alec Baldwin felt terrible, the real guilty party was whoever loaded an actual bullet into a gun that should have had blanks. This is basic stuff and someone died because of that mistake. I was surprised to find that the armorer's sentence was only 18 months in prison. I am of the opinion that if the gun wasn't supposed to have a real bullet, then the whoever loaded it is at fault. If the gun was supposed to have a real bullet, then it would have been Alec Baldwin's fault. Either way, I think that what happened was murder, and the sentence should reflect that. I also find the situations with both Alec Baldwin's trial and the armorer's trial to be suspicious. The fact that the trials were held so terribly and that the rules were not followed in making sure everyone has proper access to the evidence is very disappointing. Our judicial system is supposed to be fair, but if evidence is withheld on a regular basis how can we ever truly trust it?
Oh my god it feels like the Rust trial has been going on forever. I think Baldwin and Reed should both go to jail. I think Baldwin should not have been pointing the gun at people and pulling the trigger while not actively filming and Reed should have checked the gun before it went to Baldwin. I think it is unfair that Baldwin has probably more money and fame to keep him out of jail compared to Reed when he literally was the one who killed Hutchins. I was talking to Todd and Kristi after they read the huge report that came out on the situation and all the wrong steps and people involved leading up to the incident and I think it’s also mildly unfair it’s a Baldwin vs Reed situation when in reality it took a village to make this tragedy a reality. However usually it takes big accident or someone dying like this for change to happen unfortunately. And changes are being made to how weapons are handled in entertainment to ensure this doesn’t happen again.
The accidental death of Halyna Hutchins is one of the worst things to happen on set to happen to anyone during production. This is something that should not be taken lightly and should reinforce the strict measures that armorers should have onset and elsewhere. The loading of a live bullet. I think the ultimate fault of the loading of a live bullet and non-communication that there was a live bullet on set should be put on the armorer. In no instance there should be no reality where guns on set should be taken lightly even through a rushed or stressful production process. It is a shame that cases are overturned on withheld evidence or faults of the court, officers, or lawyers and not proven beyond a shred of doubt. Hopefully weapons on set will be held to a higher standard as they are on other sets to not take risks.
I’ve been writing comments on the Rust incident since freshman year, and they still turn up every once in a while. It’s always interesting to see how the case has developed. It seems a lot bigger than when I read about it last, which I think was last spring. Accident or not, I don’t think Gutierrez Reid’s conviction should be overturned. Even if evidence was withheld during her trial, I don’t think it will change the conviction. This is the first I’ve heard of Kenney; I’m really curious to know what he said about the case and if he’s at all responsible for the events that took place. It’s kind of insane that Gutierrez Reid is still trying to get out of her conviction. It just feels amazingly disrespectful to try to get out of punishment for something she obviously is responsible for, no less killing someone. If anything, 18 months seems short.
I honestly didn’t realize that this trial and its legal procedures for it were still going on. I remember hearing all about this years ago and the situation itself is still so sad. It really isn’t Alec Baldwin’s fault at the end of the day yet unfortunately he is the one with the consequences of it. He was under the impression that the gun itself was fake or loaded with blanks due to the situation, there was no active intent or effort made to do anything but his job. It really is the fault of the props technician on set that chose to load the gun with bullets instead of blanks. It doesn’t even make sense for real bullets to end up on the film set. Someone with malicious intent had to purposely bring them to the film set. Then the fact that the bullets were withheld and other evidence on the gun itself is insane. In my opinion, the bullets themselves as well as the tool marks on the guns is more than enough additional evidence to prompt a retrial. Its sad to see how much time has been taken away from Alec while he’s in prison due to such unethical procedures with evidence.
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