'Rust': Halyna Hutchins's parents, sister file lawsuit against Alec Baldwin for fatal shooting
The parents and sister of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, who was killed on the Rust set in 2021, filed a lawsuit against Alec Baldwin and others involved with the production over her death.
Attorney Gloria Allred is representing those family members — Halyna's dad and mom, Anatoly and Olga Androsovych, and her sister Svetlana, who live in Ukraine — and held a press conference in Los Angeles on Thursday. The lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court against defendants Baldwin, the producers of Rust and many others including in the film including armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed, first assistant director Dave Halls, prop master Sarah Zachary and ammunition supplier Seth Kenney.
The lawsuit alleges battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence and loss of consortium for the plaintiffs. Allred explained that the consortium claim "seeks to recover compensation for damages to certain relationships that are mutually dependent," noting Halyna financially supported her family.
"Halyna was the light in their lives," Allred said. "The tragic loss of their daughter and sister is heartbreaking" and they are coping with it while living in war-torn Ukraine, where Olga is an ER nurse. Her death is a "wound that will last forever."
It was noted that the family's plan was always for Halyna "to bring her family to the United States so that they could be together" — a dream that will now "never happen." Yet they hope to eventually be able to live in the U.S. and "be an important part" in the lives of grandson Andros and son-in-law Matthew Hutchins.
In a video, Svetlana said the death of her sibling has been "one of my biggest losses of my life" and said the health of their parents has "sharply declined." Olga was too emotional to speak.
Allred, who shared photos of Halyna with her family members, said the family is close with Matthew and supported his decision to settle his lawsuit with Baldwin and Rust producers last year.
When asked about the differences between the two lawsuits, Allred said the settlement for Matthew "was for [him] and his child. We are now representing others in the family — mom, dad, and sister — and there has been no settlement for them. Matter of fact, there has been no outreach to them by Mr. Baldwin to even say he was sorry. So we want accountability and justice for them. It's as simple as that."
Halyna, a rising star in her field, was shot — by a gun held by Baldwin — while setting up a camera shot during rehearsal on the New Mexico set of the low-budget Western film. Baldwin, who was charged last month with two counts of involuntary manslaughter with prosecutors alleging he was "distracted" during gun training and showed "reckless deviation" from standard safety protocols on set, has maintained he did not pull the trigger despite the FBI forensic report finding that the gun couldn't fire without the trigger being pulled.
Armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed, who oversaw the of handling weapons on set, was also charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter. First assistant director Dave Halls — who Baldwin said told him the gun was "cold," meaning it contained no live ammunition — made a plea agreement with prosecutors to negligent use of a deadly weapon charges. The film's director, Joel Souza, was struck by the same round, but survived.
It's still unclear how a live round made it onto the set in the first place, and Gutierrez Reed denied knowledge of it. Her attorneys have said she was under "extreme pressure" and was "rushed" on the set as she juggled two jobs, and vow she "will be exonerated of wrongdoing."
Baldwin and Gutierrez Reed are scheduled to make their first court appearance, which will be remote, on Feb. 24. Halls's plea conference is scheduled for March 8.
As noted, Matthew settled a lawsuit with Rust producers, of which Baldwin was one, filed on behalf of himself and the couple's young son in October. Part of the settlement terms include Matthew taking the role of executive producer on Rust, which is supposed to resume production with Baldwin in the lead role.
After the criminal charges were filed, Matthew's attorney Brian Panish said in a statement they supported the charges, saying their own independent investigation also supported charges. "It is comfort to the family that, in New Mexico, no one is above the law."
Luke Nikas, an attorney for Baldwin, said the decision to file criminal charges "distorts Halyna Hutchins's tragic death and represents a terrible miscarriage of justice. Mr. Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun — or anywhere on the movie set. He relied on the professionals with whom he worked, who assured him the gun did not have live rounds. We will fight these charges, and we will win."
There have been other lawsuits filed in the wake of the fatal on-set shooting. Allred is also representing Rust script supervisor Mamie Mitchell against Baldwin and his finance company El Dorado Pictures, Inc., for injuries she claims she sustained when he "discharged a loaded gun towards" her.
