An assistant director on the set of the film Rust – at Bonanza Creek Ranch in Santa Fe County – got a “prop gun” from a rolling cart and handed it to one of America’s most famous actors on Thursday afternoon.
“Cold weapon,” called the deputy director.
Moments later, Alec Baldwin fired a shot that hit cameraman Halyna Hutchins in the chest and director Joel Souza in the shoulder.
Hutchins, 42, was flown to the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque, the state’s only Level 1 trauma center, where she died. Souza, 48, was discharged from Christ St. Vincent Regional Medical Center in Santa Fe Friday.
The first publicly available sequence of events leading up to the shootings came from a search warrant affidavit issued by Det. Joel Cano; SFR received the document at the local court on Friday.
No search warrants were immediately available in the courthouse, so it is not clear what evidence investigators gathered at the scene. But the affidavit offers a glimpse of what Cano and other detectives believe they could assist in their investigation, including a mention that the shooting may have been captured on film or other video.
Magistrate Judge John Rysanek signed Cano’s request early Friday morning to collect film, video and cameras; Live and prop weapons and ammunition as well as documentation of possession of weapons and ammunition; Clothing Baldwin and others were wearing at the time of the shooting (which may have been splattered with blood, given the “close proximity” in which the shooting took place); Computer equipment for recording and storing videos and cell phones of those present; and indoor and outdoor shots of the wooden structure on the ranch where Baldwin was firing.
The affidavit also sets the schedule that Cano attributes to testimony:
The crew and actors rehearsed for a scene in Rust, Baldwin’s latest project that he is working on as an actor and producer. Cameras were set up at the crime scene.
The film team’s gunsmith had placed three “prop rifles” on a rolling cart, and the film’s assistant director grabbed one for rehearsal and handed it to Baldwin. (Although the gunsmith and assistant director are named in the affidavit, SFR does not identify them as neither has been charged or charged with a crime.)
Then the assistant director signaled to those gathered for a test that there was no live ammunition in the weapon by shouting: “Cold weapon”.
The assistant director “didn’t know there were live rounds in the prop gun,” Cano wrote in the affidavit.
After filming, Baldwin switched from the “Old Western” costume he wore for the scene to street clothes. The actor gave the costume to investigators before leaving the ranch.
The armourer, meanwhile, confiscated the propeller cannon that had been fired by Baldwin and a spent case. The gunsmith gave the gun to detectives, which they stowed in a patrol car along with the other prop guns and ammunition that were on the trolley. The film is set in the 1880s, but the affidavit does not contain any information about the type or caliber of the weapon.
Baldwin volunteered to go to the sheriff’s office and make a statement after the shooting, sources told SFR. It appears that he is considered a witness and not a suspect.
No charges had been made in connection with the shootings at the time of publication. Santa Fe County Sheriff’s spokesman Juan Rios did not respond to a list of written questions from SFR, including whether there will be charges, whether someone is being treated as a suspect, and what investigators are primarily focusing on on Friday afternoon.
First District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies issued a statement at 10am on Friday: “This case is still in the preliminary stages of the investigation. We support and offer our full assistance to the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office. We do not currently know if any charges will be brought. We will examine all facts and evidence of the case with the utmost discretion and have further information at a later date. Our thoughts are affected by this tragedy for all of them. “
Filming for Rust began earlier this month and should last through November. The state film bureau said the production would employ approximately 75 New Mexico crew members, 22 New Mexico lead actors, and 230 New Mexico background talent. Souza lives in San Francisco; Hutchins is from Ukraine.
Correction: This story originally misspelled Halyna Hutchins’ first name.
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