{"id":41091,"date":"2022-04-20T17:19:20","date_gmt":"2022-04-20T23:19:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/new-mexico-fines-film-company-over-alec-baldwin-shooting\/"},"modified":"2022-04-20T23:19:20","modified_gmt":"2022-04-20T23:19:20","slug":"new-mexico-fines-film-company-over-alec-baldwin-shooting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/new-mexico-fines-film-company-over-alec-baldwin-shooting\/","title":{"rendered":"New Mexico fines film company over Alec Baldwin shooting"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Bonanza
Bonanza Creek Ranch, where the film \u201cRust\u201d was being filmed, appears in Santa Fe, N.M. on Oct. 23, 2021. On Wednesday, April 20, 2022, New Mexico workplace safety regulators issued the maximum possible fine against a film production company for firearms safety failures on the set of \u201cRust\u201d where a cinematographer was fatally shot in October 2021 by actor and producer Alec Baldwin. (Jae C. Hong\/Associated Press file)<\/span>Jae C. Hong<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

SANTA FE \u2013 New Mexico workplace safety regulators on Wednesday issued the maximum possible fine of nearly $137,000 against a film production company for firearms safety failures on the set of \u201cRust\u201d where actor and producer Alec Baldwin fatally shot a cinematographer in October.<\/p>\n

New Mexico\u2019s Occupational Health and Safety Bureau said Rust Movie Productions must pay $136,793, and distributed a scathing narrative of safety failures in violation of standard industry protocols, including testimony that production managers took limited or no action to address two misfires on set before the fatal shooting. The bureau also documented gun safety complaints from crew members that went unheeded and said weapons specialists were not allowed to make decisions about additional safety training.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we had, based on our investigators\u2019 findings, was a set of obvious hazards to employees regarding the use of firearms and management\u2019s failure to act upon those obvious hazards,\u201d Bob Genoway, bureau chief for occupational safety, told The Associated Press.<\/p>\n

At a ranch on the outskirts of Santa Fe on Oct. 21, 2021, Baldwin was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins inside a small church during setup for the filming of a scene when it went off, killing Hutchins and wounding the director, Joel Souza.<\/p>\n

Baldwin said in a December interview with ABC News<\/a> that he was pointing the gun at Hutchins at her instruction on the New Mexico set of the Western film when it went off without his pulling the trigger.<\/p>\n

The new occupational safety report confirms that a large-caliber revolver was handed to Baldwin by an assistant director, David Halls, without consulting with on-set weapons specialists during or after the gun was loaded. Regulators note that Halls also served as safety coordinator and that he was present and witnessed two accidental discharges of rifles on set, and that he and other managers who knew of the misfires took no investigative, corrective or disciplinary action. Crew members expressed surprise and discomfort.<\/p>\n

\"On
On Wednesday, April 20, 2022, New Mexico workplace safety regulators issued the maximum possible fine against a film production company for firearms safety failures on the set of \u201cRust\u201d where a cinematographer was fatally shot in October 2021 by actor and producer Alec Baldwin. (Jae C. Hong\/Associated Press file)<\/span>Jae C. Hong<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThe safety coordinator was present on set and took no direct action to address safety concerns,” the report says. \u201cManagement was provided with multiple opportunities to take corrective actions and chose not to do so. As a result of these failures, Director Joel Souza and Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins were severely injured. Halyna Hutchins succumbed to her injuries.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rust Movie Productions said through a spokesperson that it would dispute the findings and sanction.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile we appreciate OSHA\u2019s time and effort in its investigation, we disagree with its findings and plan to appeal,” said Stefan Friedman. Any appeal would be heard initially by the state\u2019s occupational health and safety commission.<\/p>\n

Baldwin issued a statement from his attorney, asserting that the safety investigation \u201cexonerates Mr. Baldwin.\u201d<\/p>\n

An attorney for Halls was not immediately available.<\/p>\n

The state fine applies to a film with a budget of about $7 million. Baldwin was assigned a salary of $250,000 as an actor and producer and may have put some of that money back into the production.<\/p>\n

At least five lawsuits have been filed over the shooting, including a wrongful death lawsuit brought by Hutchins\u2019 family against Baldwin and the movie\u2019s other producers. The lawsuit on behalf of widower Matt Hutchins<\/a> and his 9-year-old son alleges a \u201ccallous\u201d disregard in the face of safety complaints on the set.<\/p>\n

James Kenney, secretary of the Environment Department that oversees occupational safety, said the agency dedicated 1,500 staff hours to its investigation, examined hundreds of documents and conducted at least a dozen interviews with cast and crew members.<\/p>\n

Investigators found production managers placed tight limits on resources for a small team that controlled weapons on set and failed to address concerns about a shotgun left unattended twice.<\/p>\n

Armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed<\/a>, the daughter of a sharpshooter and consultant to film productions, was limited to eight paid days as an armorer to oversee weapons and training, and was assigned otherwise to lighter duties as a props assistant. As her time as an armorer ran out, Gutierrez Reed warned a manager and was rebuffed.<\/p>\n

Gutierrez Reed is both a plaintiff and a defendant in lawsuits seeking damages in the fatal shooting. In a statement Wednesday, her attorney highlighted findings that the armorer \u201cwas not provided adequate time or resources to conduct her job effectively.\u201d<\/p>\n

Safety investigators also note that the production company did not develop a process to ensure live rounds of ammunition were not brought on set, in violation of industry safety protocols<\/a>. Safety meetings were conducted, but not every day weapons were used, as required.<\/p>\n

Kenney said the separate investigations into possible criminal charges<\/a> are still underway. The Santa Fe County sheriff and local prosecutors had no immediate comment.<\/p>\n

Kenney said his agency received no direct safety complaints from cast or crew before the fatal shooting, even though anonymity is offered.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis tragedy, this loss of life, it could have been prevented, and we want people to say something,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Kenney was appointed in 2019 by Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a staunch advocate for the film industry who increased a state cap in industry incentives shortly after taking office.<\/p>\n

New Mexico competes with non-Hollywood production sites in states such as Georgia, Louisiana and New York. Film productions have flocked to New Mexico in recent years to seize on its diverse outdoor scenery, moderate costs and generous state incentives, including a rebate of between 25% and 35% of in-state spending for video production that helps filmmakers large and small underwrite their work.<\/p>\n

\"Alec
Alec Baldwin performs emcees the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Ripple of Hope Award Gala at New York Hilton Midtown on Dec. 9, 2021, in New York. (Evan Agostini\/Invision\/Associated Press file)<\/span>Evan Agostini<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bonanza Creek Ranch, where the film \u201cRust\u201d was being filmed, appears in Santa Fe, N.M. on Oct. 23, 2021. On Wednesday, April 20, 2022, New Mexico workplace safety regulators issued the maximum possible fine against a film production company for firearms safety failures on the set of \u201cRust\u201d where a cinematographer was fatally shot in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":41092,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[815,138],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-41091","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-associated-press-new-mexico","tag-new-mexico"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41091","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41091"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41091\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41092"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41091"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41091"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41091"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=41091"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}