Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the on-set armorer during the tragic Rust shooting, has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter, per The Los Angeles Times. The decision comes after days of depressing and frustrating testimony from those on the production. The New Mexico jury deliberated for two hours before handing down the verdict, following 10 days of testimony. The jury characterized her actions as “willful disregard” for safety procedures. Gutierrez-Reed faces up to 18 months in prison.
Furthermore, being that it’s an independent production, she was often rushed through gun safety measures. For example, Gutierrez-Reed testified that the first assistant director, Dave Halls, told her, “We don’t have time” for a weapons check on the day of the shooting. Last year, Halls took a plea deal and has fulfilled his six months of unsupervised probation.