A worker, who said he came to pick up equipment, walks toward security guards at the entrance to the Bonanza Creek Ranch film set in Santa Fe, NM, Monday, Oct. 25, 2021.
Jae C. Hong | PA
Producers of the ‘Rust’ movie starring Alec Baldwin announced Friday they will pay a reduced fine of $100,000 to the New Mexico Bureau of Occupational Health and Safety, settling a civil investigation into the shooting death of the cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
The final penalty was lowered from an initial fine of $136,793 issued last April. The state agency also downgraded the case from the most serious classification, “voluntary-serious,” to “serious.” The rules will be finalized 20 days after submission.
“Our top priority has always been to resume production and complete this film so that we can honor the life and work of Halyna Hutchins,” Melina Spadone, an attorney representing the production company “Rust,” said in a statement. “Settling this case rather than litigating is the best way forward to achieve this goal.”
The producers plan to continue filming “Rust” this spring and also announced that a Hutchins documentary will begin production.
Authorities in New Mexico conducted a series of witness depositions on the matter and released a report in April, saying the film’s producers had “failed” to comply with gun safety standards nationwide. Of the industry.
Evidence gathered in the investigation has been used by defendants in other cases related to the shooting and to “correct misinformation” in the media, according to a Friday announcement.
The announcement comes a day after Baldwin, who handled the gun that killed Hutchins, pleaded not guilty and waived his first court appearance, which was due on Friday. Along with starring in the film, Baldwin is also a producer.
Baldwin and the film’s gunsmith Hannah Gutierrez-Reed face manslaughter charges in an ongoing criminal case. Gutierrez-Reed made his first court appearance on Friday. Baldwin also faces a civil lawsuit from Hutchins’ parents and sister.
