Alec Baldwin was accused of violating basic gun safety rules and playing "make-believe" with a deadly weapon, as the Hollywood star's trial for involuntary manslaughter over a fatal shooting on the set of Western movie Rust began Wednesday. Baldwin was holding a prop revolver during a fateful rehearsal in October 2021 when it fired a live round, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounding the movie's director. In opening statements in a court in Santa Fe, New Mexico, prosecutor Erlinda Ocampo Johnson painted a picture of a powerful movie star who behaved in "a reckless manner" and "without due regard for the safety of others" on set.
She said Baldwin had "requested to be assigned the biggest gun available" for the Rust scene, had failed to take a weapons training session seriously, and regularly cocked and pointed firearms at people on set. READ | Alec Baldwin's real-life role in manslaughter case unfolds three years after on-set catastrophe Baldwin played "make-believe with a real gun and violated the cardinal rules of firearm safety," Johnson told the jury. Movie set safety rules require actors "to treat every firearm as though it's loaded, to never point a firearm at another person, and to never put your finger on the trigger unless you're prepared to shoot," she added.
'Gunfights in movies' Baldwin, 66, faces up to 18 months in prison if found guilty. The actor - known for the television comedy 30 Rock - attended the court wearing a dark suit and tie, chatting qu.
