Alec Baldwin "played make believe with a real gun and violated the cardinal rules of firearm safety" on the day of the fatal shooting on the set of his Western film Rust, a court has heard. Special prosecutor Erlinda Johnson made the statement as she opened the case against the Hollywood star in Santa Fe, New Mexico , on Wednesday. But the defence team presented a different picture, saying cinematographer Halyna Hutchins ' death was "an unspeakable tragedy" - but Baldwin "was an actor, acting" and "committed no crime".
During day one of the trial, jurors were also shown footage of medics desperately trying to save the cinematographer, described as a "vibrant 42-year-old rising star", and treat director Joel Souza, who was also wounded. Clips of Baldwin on set beforehand and in the aftermath were also shown. The 66-year-old is charged with involuntary manslaughter and has pleaded not guilty, always maintaining he did not pull the gun's trigger and was not responsible for ensuring safety on set.
And the critical question that really needs to be answered, say his lawyers, is how the live round ended up there in the first place. The court later heard from a crime scene technician, who says she believed she recovered six live rounds in total from the set. The high-profile trial will delve into gun safety and star power on a low-budget Western movie, which was being filmed on the remote Bonanza Creek Ranch set when the tragedy took place in October 2021.
Baldwin, whose is on trial .
