Alec Baldwin’s lawyers file to have second Rust lawsuit thrown out

By Mike Bedigan

Lawyers for Alec Baldwin have appealed to have the second lawsuit brought against the actor over the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins thrown out.

Representatives said nothing in the allegations brought by script supervisor Mamie Mitchell suggested that anyone knew that the prop contained live ammunition leading up to the “unprecedented” incident.

The fatal shooting occurred on the set of Rust, on location in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in November.

Mitchell’s lawsuit claims Baldwin fired the weapon when it was not called for in the script of the Western.

“Nothing about the plaintiff’s allegations suggest that any of the defendants, including Mr Baldwin, intended the prop gun to be loaded with live ammunition,” lawyers said, in documents shared by US media outlets.

“Moreover, nothing about the plaintiff’s allegations suggests any of the defendants knew the prop gun contained live ammunition.

“The absence of such allegations of course makes sense because the incident is apparently unprecedented in the filmmaking industry.”

The submissions were made at Los Angeles Superior Court on January 24, court documents show.

Baldwin was previously accused of playing “Russian roulette” when he fired the gun without checking it and without having an armorer do so in his presence, by Ms Mitchell’s lawyer Gloria Allred.

He is also facing another lawsuit brought by the head of lighting on the film, Serge Svetnoy, over the incident.

As well as Baldwin, both lawsuits name nearly two dozen defendants associated with the film including David Halls, the assistant director who handed Baldwin the gun; and Hannah Gutierrez Reed, who was in charge of weapons on the set.