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Two weeks ago, Alec Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter trial for the death of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in October 2021 was dismissed with prejudice after three days, because of a Brady violation. Alec’s defense attorneys moved for the case to be dismissed when they learned the prosecution had withheld evidence, and the judge agreed that there was no fair, legal way forward after a blunder like that. Now jurors are starting to speak to the press about the whirlwind trial. People Mag interviewed Juror No. 1, aka Martina Marquez of New Mexico, who described the case as “mishandled from the get-go.” She also said that based on the evidence they were shown, it seemed “pointless” that the prosecution had gone after Alec so hard.
Juror No. 1 speaks: New Mexico resident [Martina] Marquez, 36, an oncology scheduler noted in court documents as juror No. 1, says she “was open-minded to listening to the facts” from the start of the legal proceedings. However, as the prosecutors and defense presented evidence and elicited testimony from witnesses over the first two days of the trial, the more she became convinced the “case seemed to be mishandled from the get-go,” she tells PEOPLE in her first interview.
‘An unfortunate accident’: During the trial, special prosecutor Erlinda Johnson painted the movie’s star as a “reckless” person who ignored standard gun safety protocol, which, she claimed, contributed to Hutchins’ death. But Marquez says she came to see the ordeal “as an unfortunate accident,” she tells PEOPLE. “The indictment charge seemed a little bit harsh.”
Police had to search for the prop gun? “Just starting from the lapel cam videos, it didn’t make sense how they could point fingers directly towards him [Baldwin] as a whole,” she says. She points to the sheer number of people on set in the aftermath of the shooting, as seen in body camera footage from Timoteo Benavidez, a lieutenant with the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office. Benavidez’s footage, which was shown in court, also showed him searching for the prop gun that Baldwin held, which he did not receive until it was given to him by Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed (who was convicted in March of involuntary manslaughter for accidentally loading live ammunition into the firearm and is now serving 18 months in prison).
The body cam footage revealed a lot of dysfunction: “It didn’t make sense,” continues Marquez. “We all watch TV and we watch movies. You’re not supposed to really touch evidence and move it from place to place. So that made me iffy about the situation because it could have been in so many people’s hands by the time the lieutenant actually confiscated it.” Marquez says she places the blame on Gutierrez-Reed: “I felt like she was liable for what happened.” Referring to the time spent investigating and bringing charges against Baldwin, Marquez says, “it didn’t need to go this far. And it did seem pointless.”
Baldwin was targeted because of his profile: Asked if she thought prosecutors went after Baldwin because he is a celebrity, Marquez agreed. “I do think they were,” she said. “I feel like they needed to pin [the death] on somebody.” Two other jurors also expressed their doubts about the case against Baldwin in a July 20 interview with The New York Times.
What a mess. It sounds like the police lieutenant’s body cam footage was the most damning. What on earth happened that the prop gun, which was now a murder weapon, had to be located for the police after the shooting? No one thought it would be important, if not imperative to set that aside for authorities? And I don’t know about you, but it certainly leapt out at me that it was Hannah Gutierrez-Reed who ultimately procured the gun for the cop. I realize she was the armorer, so theoretically she should be the only person on set handling it. But Hannah has so thoroughly wrecked her credibility that I was immediately suspect upon reading that. And we’re still waiting to see if her motion to get a dismissal or retrial is granted.
As for what Juror No. 1 Marquez says about Alec’s role in all of this, she pretty much laid out what we’re already heard: that they tried to pin it on him because he’s Alec Baldwin, when the reality is this was a terrible accident on his part.
I still don’t understand why they need real shootable guns for a movie set. Just use replicas and add the boom sound in later and there will never be any risk of it killing anyone. Wasn’t this just going to be some B movie anyway?
It might be a cost issue. Usually the real thing costs less than the replica and the special effects needed afterwards.
I am glad the charges were dismissed against Baldwin, it was not his place to know whether live rounds or blanks were in the prop guns. Baldwin had 2 things to be busy with, Directing and Acting. That was Reed’s job. She was hired because her father is a well respected Armour and Prop Master, here in Hollywood – he taught her the biz.
Reed shouldered the responsibility because that was commitment to the production. I like when you sit in the emergency seats of a commercial plane… you attest you will be responsible for opening the emergency exits in the event of a emergency. If you don’t you will be prosecuted.
If she was not comfortable with her abilities she should’ve quit which would’ve stopped production until another prop master was found – and saved a life.
Correct me if I am wrong, but that makes it sound as if the armorer had taken steps to hide the gun in try to clean the scene before police arrived.
Sarita that is what I thought too.