I can’t believe this October will mark five years since the accidental killing of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Sadly, the fallout is still ongoing. Back in 2021, Halyna was (gorgeously) lensing the Western indie Rust when during a rehearsal, the prop gun given to star Alec Baldwin accidentally discharged a live bullet, killing Halyna and injuring the film’s director Joel Souza. (In a cruel twist of irony, the plot of Rust centered on an accidental shooting.) We quickly learned that the low budget film had an inexperienced nepo armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who continually failed to maintain safety standards on set. Hannah was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in March 2024 and sentenced to 18 months in prison (though she was released after only 13 months).
In July 2024, Alec Baldwin was facing a criminal trial for the same charge of involuntary manslaughter (Alec was also a producer on the film), but the case was dismissed “with prejudice” within days of starting due to the prosecution withholding evidence. The “with prejudice” meant that the criminal case could never be brought against Alec again. A civil trial is another matter, though, and a California judge just ruled that a civil case brought by a Rust crew member against Alec can move forward in October:
Serge Svetnoy, a gaffer who was on set, has alleged that he suffered emotional distress due to negligence on the part of Baldwin and the production. Baldwin has said he had no idea the gun was loaded with a live round — a grave breach of safety protocols — and that he did not pull the trigger.
In a summary judgment ruling on Friday, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Maurice Leiter allowed the case to proceed to trial. He rejected defense arguments from Rust Movie Productions and Baldwin that they were not legally responsible for set safety.
“A reasonable jury could find that Mr. Baldwin recklessly disregarded the probability that pointing a gun in the direction of someone, with the finger on the trigger, would cause emotional distress,” the judge wrote.
Svetnoy was not injured in the shooting, though he has alleged that he felt a whoosh from the gunshot and heard a loud bang. The judge threw out his claim for assault, finding no evidence that Baldwin intended to harm anyone.
But if the case does proceed to trial — and is not settled first — Baldwin will again face questions over whether he behaved recklessly by pointing a gun at the crew and pulling the trigger.
“Mr. Baldwin is the last line of defense,” argued John Upton, Svetnoy’s attorney, at a hearing on Friday. “Guns generally do not shoot themselves.”
The judge allowed claims for punitive damages, negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Rust Movie Productions argued that Svetnoy’s claims should be left to the workers compensation system, but Leiter rejected that argument, finding that the company did not have any employees, and had thus failed to show that workers compensation was available.
“We’re pleased with the court’s decision,” Upton said outside court. “And we’ll see where it goes from here.”
The trial was set to begin on May 26, but the parties asked for a lengthy continuance to pursue further discovery and discuss a possible settlement. Noting that the case is nearly five years old, Leiter set the trial for Oct. 12 and said he was not inclined to allow further delays.
“I’m a little concerned about his case going on and on and one when it should be coming to a resolution,” the judge said.
Shortly after the criminal case against Alec was dismissed in July 2024, some of the jurors spoke out about the days-long trial, and commented that it seemed like charges were brought because it was Alec Baldwin, when it really was a tragic accident. This civil case seems like that again, no? I’m sure everyone on the Rust crew, especially anyone on set that day, has suffered “emotional distress.” It was an emotionally distressing accident that should never have happened. I don’t mean to undermine this guy, Serge Svetnoy’s, experience of a truly awful situation. So am I wrong to feel like there’s something iffy about anyone besides Halyna’s family (or Joel Souza) continuing to seek damages, years past the incident? That being said, the film’s company made plenty of heinous arguments in trying to get the case dismissed. Saying Svetnoy could have sought workers comp, when they didn’t offer workers comp, was pitiful. But the most egregious bit was the nerve they had in claiming they weren’t responsible for set safety. Are you f–king kidding me??
Photos credit: IMAGO/Barbara Hine/Avalon, Janet Mayer/INSTARimages.com, Roger Wong/INSTARimages, Getty Images
I’ve never been a huge fan of Baldwins, but I do agree with you that this case seems weak. I’ll be interested in seeing how the arguments go.
If nothing else, I guess this means that their reality show will get another season, at least, they’ll need to pay for the lawyers.
That tacky reality show! These people have zero shame or self awareness. I doubt this lawsuit will go anywhere, but yeah there’ll be another season of hand wringing over how someone else’s tragic death has been so hard on their basketball team … I mean family.
While I don’t doubt that the events of that day were emotionally distressing for everyone involved (directly and indirectly) this really does come across as a money-grab lawsuit because of who it involves. I wouldn’t be surprised if a settlement to avoid a trial was all they were really angling for.