EFFORTPOST The Trial of Hannah Gutierrez-Reed

I promised I wouldn't write these for a while. However, I'm unemployed and have more time on my hands so here we go. For this post, I will explore every nook and cranny of the case so you can make your own predictions regarding the outcome of the ongoing trial.

For those not in the know, Hannah is being charged with involuntary manslaughter for the killing of Halyna Hutchins on the set of Rust. Why? We'll explore that in a moment after we briefly discuss precisely who Hannah is. The case is being deliberated and has been quite eventful, to the point where I'm surprised there aren't more posts here. To ensure the post remains high-quality, I'm not going to write it all in one go. Instead, I'll take breaks, proofread, and double-check all the facts. This is a particularly hard one to research because there is some misinformation floating around.

Lastly, I heard my neighbors having s*x last night and it kept me up so I'm running on no sleep. However, as I said, I'm unemployed at present so that isn't too much of an issue. It was very painful to be told that it'll be the last day at my workplace, and within the hour I had lost access to all my work-related accounts. I'm going to therapy to cope with the sudden event, and that has helped me not self-harm as a response, which is good. Nevertheless, it's hard to not feel worthless and rejected.

Losing my job has also locked me tightly into being single. Having a gf is impossible if you're broke, especially at 28 when most people are at least settling into a career. I am, as TLC would say, a scrub.

But that's okay. I'll just focus on self-improvement. I'm currently doing a course on copywriting which should hopefully help me find a new job. However, as we all know, it's so easy to lose motivation and just slip into that spiral of depression. It gets worse when you can hear your neighbours fricking and reminding you of your inadequacies and the fact that you're missing out on an experience that is a cornerstone of being a normie. I can't help but ask: "When will it be my turn to be happy and in a relationship? Is the answer truly 'never'?" I don't want that to be the case.

I'm trying to improve my writing. One thing I've noticed is that the "AI" feeling of writing comes from having sentences that begin the same way and follow a similar structure. Starting too many sentences with "however" or "I" will do this. To combat the AI-ness of my writing, I'll remain cognizant of the structure and flow to ensure it has a human element to it. This shouldn't be too hard. There are certain things AI can't do just yet, like point out the fact that Hannah's gone from a pig to a princess as she's gussied up for her trial. The change is truly dramatic.

It's an interesting thing to think about. Modern writers have to contend with AI and, in a sense, prove that they're not a robot. Every writing piece is like one of those Captcha puzzles. You have to ask yourself: "What can I do that AI can't? How do I give my writing the kind of warmth (for lack of a better term) that is absent in AI writing?".

One element that snatches that "warmth" from my writing is going hard on the benzos. Benzos aren't good for creativity. They make you write like shit and even though you feel sober, you're actually just vomiting a bunch of incorrect crap. I look back on the work I did on benzos and it's clear that it has a significantly terrible impact on my writing. I'm ashamed of it. Weed isn't like that. With or without it, the quality of my writing doesn't change. In fact, weed can be a good catalyst for new ideas, but in my case, I believe it also amplified my depression, so I bid goodbye to the holy herb.

Now that I've gotten into a Ph.D. program I also need to not frick it up again, which is surprisingly hard when you're a frick up to begin with. The last time I wasted 4 years and I have nothing to show for it. This time I want to get it right and finally acquire my darn Ph.D. If it takes me 3 years I'll be 31 when I get it! So no more benzo and ambien abuse, self-harming, doing acid, and all that crap that ruins my brain and disturbs my writing process. I need to put out my best work.

Also, I think I'm teetering on the razor edge of addiction. Currently, I feel like puking when I'm not abusing benzos, but it's not too much to handle (yet). I know it's a feeling that'll pass, so I only take the prescribed amount.

Let's go.

Who is Hannah Gutierrez-Reed?

I'll be referring to her simply as Hannah from this point onward because frick trying to spell her last name repeatedly. She was born in 1997 (officially part of the zoomer generation!) in New York. I tried to find information on her biological parents, but there seems to be nothing publicly available. What we do know is that she was raised by Thell Reed, who is known for his skills when it comes to handling guns. I'm sure you've read or heard that he's a legendary armorer (more on what that is later), but his abilities don't stop there. He has won several shooting competitions, and when it comes to flashiness with guns, it's hard to do better than Thell.

As you can see, his ability to draw guns is near-unparalleled, and if there's anyone you want around to help you when you have a firearm, Thell's your guy. He's served as an armorer in several films, including Django Unchained , Blade, and L.A. Confidential to name but a few. Again, it's hard to ascertain precisely how Thell came to be Hannah's stepfather, but we do know that he taught her about guns, making her proficient with firearms as well. Despite the incident, Hannah's not a fool when she's strapped. Far from it, she knows her way around most weapons. In an interview in GMA, Thell claims Hannah has been around guns since childhood.

Hannah studied at Northern Arizona University, graduating in 2020. Her dream was to become a cinematographer, but with her father's influence, she found herself taking the role of armorer instead. We know that she is a fan of Edgar Allan Poe, as she has a massive tattoo of him. This suggests that her love for the arts extends past film and leaks into literature.

Nobody is one-sided, however. She's also a girl who clearly likes to have fun, and there are signs that she revelled in her youth and (subjective) beauty. On her now-deleted Twitter page, she encouraged men with a findom fetish to be her "pay-pigs" and give her money. We have no indication regarding how successful she was in this endeavour. Many may argue that nobody would want to throw money at her. In my opinion, I think it was successful enough that she was already creating ways to lure even more pay-pigs into her pen. The depravity of men knows no bounds. Alas, let us not judge, for money is hard to come by, and she had found a way to earn without working. While we may argue the ethics of exploiting this fetish, that is a matter for another day.

Enough about horny men. We're here to discuss the Rust incident. This means our focus should be on Hannah and her career as an armorer. So let's start by defining what an armorer is. An armorer, also known as a weapons master is responsible for maintaining control and assuring safety with all weapons on the set of a film. It may sound weird, but this applies to "fake" weapons as well. It's also not limited to guns. Armorers are necessary for knives, swords, and all manner of human-hurters you can think of.

If a gun is involved, the armorer will typically give lessons to the cast regarding gun safety, and there will be daily safety meetings. They will check the gun to ensure there is no ammunition before handing it to the performer, and they will adequately clean the gun. The gun must be double-checked, with one safety check done in front of the performer.

The armorer's word is final, and even if a director wants to film a scene in a specific way, the armorer can veto that decision should it be deemed too dangerous. Remember, it doesn't matter if the weapon is real or made of candy - if it's on set, the armorer must treat it like it is real. Those on set testify that Hannah was lackadaisical when it came to safety. One crew member testified that there were carts left unattended with weapons and bandoliers.

For more information on the duties of an armorer, I suggest watching the testimony of a gun expert in Hannah's trial.

One last point before we move on. Hannah is a known drug user. This came out during the trial where her text messages clearly indicated that she smokes marijuana, and she also handed cocaine to someone. Judge her if you wish, but I doubt she was the only one on that set who used cocaine considering the industry.

As an aside, she named her phone "Gorilla Grip Kitty Pal".

https://x.com/theshamingofjay/status/1761098173475434947

Interlude

So there are two ways we can proceed from here. The first option is to briefly discuss the other player in the game, namely David Halls. The second option is to stick to Hannah's story and dive into discussing the movie Rust. I think having as much background knowledge as possible is best, so I hope you don't mind if I discuss Halls. I've chosen to not include a section on Alec Baldwin because he will be subject to his own trial. Furthermore, he is an untapped lolcow along with his wife who lied about her ethnicity to be BIPOC, and regularly posts cringe. There's a whole subreddit dedicated to keeping track of her antics and fake accent.

https://old.reddit.com/r/HilariaBaldwin/

Have a browse, you'll enjoy it. My point is, for now, we're sticking with Hannah's story and the current court case. Alec deserves his own thread. Whatever your views are on Hannah, I ask you to put them aside for now. You may be surprised at how much your opinion changes over time.

Completely tangentially, why would any deny the correctness of the Oxford comma? It provides so much clarification when listing items. If you have a genuine argument for why the Oxford comma should not be used, I'd like to read it because as far as I can tell it can only bring ambiguity by omitting it. There is no upside, just a big downside. It baffles me to think some full-blown professors have been studying English their whole lives and insist the Oxford comma should be left out. They're nuts!

David Halls

As a man in his fifties, David Halls has achieved more than most of us will. His career in the entertainment industry has been a lucrative one that began shortly after he completed his higher education. His first film, Grumpy Old Men (1993) had him serving as an assistant location manager. However, Halls was destined for more. In 1996 he scored the covetable position of additional second assistant director. Part of his success came from his personality. He is described by those around him as a well-do kind of person who will put pressure to achieve goals. He is goal-driven and can be one-track-minded, which turned out to be his hamartia.

It would be pointless to list all the films he's worked on - there's IMDb for that. What's important to know is that there reached a point where he was serving as the first assistant director in high-profile movies such as Bone Tomhawk, which is nothing to scoff at.

The first assistant director's job is to ensure everything goes according to schedule, which can be difficult with large projects. Things as minor as ensuring filming occurs before sundown become of utmost importance. Another day of filming means taking another bite out of the budget which is obviously undesirable. The first assistant director also serves as the web between all the divisions, ensuring communication takes place. There is also a safety aspect associated with the job, and it is the 1st AD's job to ensure safety protocols on set are established and maintained.

Overall, he seems to be a private man, as there isn't much information about him despite his achievements. He has pleaded guilty to "negligent use of a deadly weapon", earning him 6 months probation. Do you think he went the smart route, or should he have stood trial and pled his case?

Rust: The Movie

Joel Souza is a screenwriter behind titles such as Gold Squad and, hilariously, Hannah's Gold. As he admitted during his testimony in court, he had a relationship with Baldwin and they had discussed the idea of making a Western. It took a while before things aligned, but eventually, Rust was born. That is to say, Baldwin was involved with the film from its inception.

The central story of Rust involves an old man rescuing his son who is being sentenced to hang for a murder he did not commit. Though he saves his son, they are now fugitives on the run from the law. The film was set to have a relatively small budget of $8 million and it was expected that Baldwin's influence would be a drawing factor for the film. Furthermore, filming would take place in New Mexico which is a popular destination for filming. Though it had a small crew, there was a lot of talent on the set, including Halyna Hutchins who was regarded as an up-and-coming cinematographer. What could go wrong?

Filming began on 6 October 2021, and from the get-go there was trouble. It is standard protocol that gun safety is addressed daily. Hannah only did it once. It is also a protocol that performers who handle guns are given basic training. That did not happen. She was warned by producer Gabrielle Pickle to tighten up security regarding guns, to which Hannah refused, stating that there was already a system in place.

Then the complaints from the crew came. Allegedly:

• they were not paid on time

• they were made to work 13-hour days

• accommodation was far away, which cut into their rest time

• there was poor gun safety on set

• there was a lack of adequate COVID-19 protocols

These complaints may seem trivial at first, but it has become obvious that they were foreshadowing what was to come. Perhaps the biggest red flag was when prop master Sarah Zachry accidentally let off a shot. This is known as a negligent discharge, and it should not have happened, even with a dummy round. Now keep in mind, Sarah works on the Rust set but she is contracted with Seth Kenney who owns PDQ Arm and Prop which provided the ammunition for the film. All the rounds supplied were supposed to be dummy rounds.

It's easy to dismiss the idea that Kenney's company slipped in a live round by mistake, but keep in mind the premises of the business did hold live rounds. Furthermore, and most darningly, after the shooting, Sarah threw away "dummy" rounds. It sure appears to be evidence tampering, as though she knows there's a chance the live bullet slipped through via the prop company.

At the same time, things were souring between Hannah and Pickle, and in text messages shown in court, Hannah called her a c*nt. So we have negligent discharges, guns, a disgruntled crew, and c*nt-calling. Not a good combination.

The death of Halyna Hutchins

This is where things get murky, and precisely why we have a trial ongoing. On October 21, much of the crew was absent in protest, but filming continued. Baldwin was practicing a shot in which he pulled out his gun. The gun was loaded by Hannah, but not in front of Baldwin. Since the event, the actor has given conflicting accounts on who exactly handed him the firearm, though we know Hannah loaded the gun. It was supposed to be filled with dummy rounds which can be shaken to distinguish them from real rounds.

So did Halls or Hannah hand Baldwin the gun? We still don't know yet. What we do know, at least according to Halls who has pled guilty, is that Hannah did not check all the chambers of the revolver. Though he denies it, I believe that Baldwin did pull the trigger on the gun, as an expert in court has revealed that the gun would not go off without a pull of the trigger. I understand; it was a traumatic event and his brain may not want to accept his culpability. Nevertheless, a shot goes off, penetrates Hutchins' left lung, and strikes Souza's shoulder. At first, nobody knew what was going on, but Hutchins soon understood she had been shot. A medic on set rushed in, but with two injured parties present, she had her hands full.

She tried her best as she waited for the paramedics to arrive, but her toolkit did not have the required chest wound seals, nor was she trained in intubation. The paramedics tried their best, but Halyna passed away while Souza was left injured and traumatized, but fortunately alive. Hutchins leaves behind a husband and a son.

The big questions

Now we're left with some big questions. The bullet that killed Hutchins was a live round. Where did this live round come from? It was not the only one found on set. Some argue that the crew brought them onto the set to play with the guns after hours. Hannah's defense claims the rounds came from the prop manufacturer who put them in the same box as the dummy rounds.

We don't know what the truth is yet, but I lean toward Hannah herself being the one to bring live rounds. This is motivated by the fact that even the prop manufacturer had warned of Hannah's negligence and that she might make terrible errors. The problem is that he wasn't serious enough about it, calling her a "naughty child" in a text instead of directly addressing the dangerous way she was handling bullets (pulling them out of a fanny pack, for instance).

We also need to question why Sarah Zachry tried to destroy evidence. Why? What was her rationale? This will have to be explored further. She didn't load the gun or pull the trigger yet her demeanor is one of someone guilty of some crime. What are you covering up, Sarah?

Personally, I think this is the most important question: Do those who hired a 24yo armorer deserve to be held the most responsible? This is negligent on its own. At some point, it does seem like all the adults who could have stopped this (David Halls, Baldwin, Sarah, even Pickle) are placing the blame on Hannah, despite prior signs that she was just not ready for the position. Hannah is one piece of the puzzle, but, arguably, she's the smallest. Maybe I'm easy to convince, but I do side with her defence claiming that she is being made the fall girl when the blade should be spread much, much wider.