‘Rust’ Armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed Is Seeking Dismissal After Alec Baldwin’s Trial Collapses

According to her attorney, Gutierrez-Reed is filing a motion to dismiss her case amid her 18-month prison sentence.

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SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO - APRIL 15: Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed looks back at her family members at her sentencing at district court on  April 15, 2024 in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Armorer on the set of the Western film "Rust,"Gutierrez Reed was convicted by a jury of involuntary manslaughter in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins who was fatally shot by Alec Baldwin in 2021. Gutierrez Reed was sentenced to 18 months in prison. (Photo by Luis Sánchez Saturno-Pool/Getty Images)
Image Credit: Getty Images

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the former Rust movie armorer, is filing a motion to have her case dismissed after Alec Baldwin‘s trial fell apart, her lawyer confirmed.

“We are going to be filing on the same basis on discovery violations which have occurred throughout her case and continue to occur,” Jason Bowles told NBC News after Baldwin, 66, had his case collapse in court last week. “Things that I learned today that happened, absolutely shocking.”

In October 2021, Baldwin was holding a prop gun on the set of Rust while filming a scene at the Bonanza Creek Ranch in New Mexico. The gun fired a live round that fatally shot cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. The actor was charged with one count of involuntary manslaughter, and his trial began earlier this month. However, on July 13, Judicial District Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed his case after his lawyers successfully argued that prosecutors hid evidence that may have been related to Hutchins’ death.

“There is no way for the court to right this wrong,” the judge said that day, according to the outlet. “The sanction of dismissal is the only warranted remedy.”

The Aviator actor visibly cried in court and embraced his wife, Hilaria Baldwin, after the judge made her decision. Shortly thereafter, Gutierrez-Reed’s lawyer, Bowles, told NBC News that the judge “absolutely made the right decision on the law and on the facts” regarding Baldwin’s case dismissal.

“The judge found the state committed misconduct,” Bowles added. “I mean, seeing Mr. Baldwin, knowing what he was going through, knowing what Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is going through right now being in prison, and that the state has committed a pattern of violations of discovery … it’s devastating.”

For her part, Gutierrez-Reed was convicted in March of involuntary manslaughter related to Hutchins’ death. She was sentenced to 18 months in prison as a result.

The tragedy on the Rust film set became a highly publicized dilemma for Baldwin. Shortly after Hutchins’ death was reported, the actor and the armorer faced criticism from the public. Since then, multiple movie sets have implemented new safety standards for anyone working with prop guns.