One of multiple live bullets found on the set of “Rust” by investigators of the 2021 fatal shooting was discovered in the bandolier of actor Jensen Ackles, according to crime scene technician Marissa Poppell.

Poppell disclosed the detail while on the stand during the second day of testimony in the involuntary manslaughter trial of actor Alec Baldwin, nearly three years after cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot on the New Mexico set of the Western film.

Asked about the live rounds of ammunition that were discovered on set, Poppell said investigators found some on a prop cart, in a box of ammo and also in two prop gun holsters — the one worn by Alec Baldwin and another worn by co-star Ackles.

137 points

This case has been going on for a while. Offhand, I can think of at least three toddlers who killed themselves or someone else using a gun that the owner knew was loaded.

None of those adults has been arrested. But the guy who was told his gun had blanks is responsible?

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15 points
*

Baldwin made fun of Trump a bunch of times on SNL. It had already been ruled involuntary manslaughter, but maga court had a bone to pick.

Additionally - a *half truth from chat frickin GPT:

"In a tense political climate, Alec Baldwin’s satirical portrayal of President Donald Trump on “Saturday Night Live” had garnered significant attention and polarized opinions. His impersonations were both celebrated and criticized, drawing ire from Trump supporters who saw his performances as disrespectful and damaging.

On the set of the film “Rust,” an unfortunate and tragic accident occurred, leading to the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. As investigations began, initial findings suggested that the incident was a result of a series of safety lapses and negligence on the part of the production team, including Baldwin, who was both an actor and a producer on the film.

Enter District Attorney Thomas Harlan, a staunch supporter of President Trump, appointed during Trump’s tenure. Harlan had previously expressed disdain for Baldwin’s portrayals of Trump, believing them to be part of a broader media conspiracy against conservative values.

Seizing the opportunity presented by the “Rust” incident, Harlan decided to press charges against Baldwin with unusual fervor. He argued that Baldwin’s role as a producer made him directly responsible for the safety lapses on set, thus filing charges of involuntary manslaughter against him. Critics claimed that the intensity and speed of the charges were disproportionate compared to similar cases in the industry, suggesting political motivations behind Harlan’s actions.

Supporters of Baldwin and various legal analysts argued that the charges were a clear case of political retribution. They pointed out that other individuals with similar roles in previous on-set accidents had not faced such severe charges. Furthermore, they highlighted Harlan’s public statements and connections to pro-Trump groups as evidence of his bias.

The media frenzy intensified, with pundits on both sides debating whether Baldwin was being unfairly targeted due to his political satire. This scenario underscores the complexities of mixing legal actions with political motivations, ultimately raising questions about the impartiality of justice in a highly polarized environment."

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-9 points

You seriously think so? “A bone to pick” because Alex Baldwin made fun of Trump. What are they, 3rd graders?

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13 points

Adults with a mental capacity of 3rd graders.

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23 points

Are you seriously asking? Did you ever see the things Trump used to tweet during those SNL performances? Have you seen any right wing commentary? Hell no they’re not third graders, when my kids were in third grade they were thoughtful, empathetic people who could follow basic logic, compromise, and lose gracefully.

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6 points

Is this accurate? I’m not finding any info on a Thomas Harlan at all

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9 points
*

Great catch. Yep Chat GPT made him up 🤷🏻 I’ll edit the original post.

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35 points

So it’s not exactly about the shooting itself but creating the negligent conditions that allowed it to happen. From what I understand, as a producer he had his crew cut as many safety corners as possible to reduce costs. His direction to cut corners led to oversights in safety, which led to the prop masters making safety mistakes and accidentslly loading a live round into a firearm designated as a prop, which led to a person dying because of an on set accident. If he didn’t direct his crew to cut corners, the chances of somebody dying is dramatically reduced and makes this line of work incredibly safe despite the potentially dangerous implements used.

So the case is about “did the executive decisions Baldwin make to cut corners on safety contribute to the death of someone on set?”

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11 points

Again, I point out that parents of children who killed/died aren’t being held to the same level of responsibility.

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8 points

Not really relevant for this topic though

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8 points

It sounds like you are saying that unless we prosecute EVERY OTHER case on this issue, we should just forget about it?

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23 points

They should be. Is that your point? That they should be, because I think any sane person would agree.

If you’re arguing that the responsible parties in this incident shouldn’t be prosecuted because another person is getting away with manslaughter… well that’s a bit silly isn’t it?

I can’t tell what your intentions are, because nuance is hard via text

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5 points

If a worker dies in a factory line while following instructions, we would all agree that owners of the factory should be held responsible. I don’t see why that concept is so difficult to grasp here and so many people are trying to defend Alec Balwdin. The filming set is a workplace and someone died through no fault of their own, but rather by the conditions set by the owners of this production. There were complaints on set about the safety conditions before this incident happened and it seems that nothing was done to mitigate it. Everyone is trying to throw the armorer under the bus, but she was hired and vetted by management, and even after complaints nothing was changed.

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9 points

Yes they should be, now leave the non sequitur discussion derailing nonsense at the door and stay on topic. Parents being irresponsible dumbasses has nothing to do with a film exec directing his crew to cut safety corners to save a quick buck.

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4 points

It was somewhat the same with smoking. We were able to ban smoking from workplaces decades ago by virtue of worker protections and the known health impact. However even today your kid’s lungs have no such protection

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5 points

Plus goofing around with a gun is not ok, even if you think there are no live rounds

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3 points

I thought he was working on a scene and not “goofing around” when the incident occurred. Was he actually just playing with the “prop” gun?

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3 points

I think it’s relevant whether he observed unsafe practices on set. It sounds like the whole thing was kind of a shit show. Plus the investigation concluded that the gun could not have fired without him pulling the trigger. Pointing a gun at someone and firing when you have reason to believe that proper safety precautions haven’t been followed is exactly the sort of thing that might end up with an involuntary manslaughter charge. I dunno if he gets convicted but I don’t think the charges are crazy.

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55 points

I think it’s bc he is also a producer. The case hinges on him being responsible for safety of the crew and being repeatedly negligent.

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29 points

This one is his negligence trial, in the trial about him as a producer it came out that he was also messing around with the gun on set and had fired blanks at the crew between takes among other unsafe behaviors.

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13 points
*

Jesus christ, firing blanks is still dangerous. If there is an obstruction in the barrel it can still act like a projectile.

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-8 points

How is being a producer more of a vital role than being a parent?

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11 points

you sign papers saying your responsible for things as a producer. to be a parent you just have sex.

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20 points

One of ten producers. And the one who was mostly in charge fundraising.

The people who were actually in charge of safety and the guns told Baldwin it was safe.

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14 points

This is omitting the detail that members of the crew had brought up safety concerns about the firearms handlers and production went on.

They had an inexperienced armorer on set raising all sorts of red flags, production was made aware, show went on.

Baldwin is on set when many producers probably weren’t. He’s got his fair shame of blame in this, and the armorer as well.

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3 points

Also, look at the first minute of a major Hollywood movie; there are often a dozen companies involved. I remember one wrestling show that seemed to have more producers than wrestlers involved.

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2 points

By all means, arrest them all. Take what justice we can get

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24 points

If you want logic from American gun culture, you better get comfortable waiting.

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5 points

Amen

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-31 points

stop making movies with guns people. it’s not that hard. no need to glorify gun violence.

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8 points

That’s certenly a take.

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10 points

This is definitely one of the opinions of all time.

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0 points

Or they could just use non-firing guns.

Or the armorer could actually do their job and not hand a loaded gun to the actor and call it a cold gun.

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5 points

Yes never show guns, the century old weapons of destruction. Not mentioning violence will make the next generation peaceful and prosperous

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23 points

This is a weird take. Guns appear in fiction a lot, and they can be important to a lot of plots.

I think the line can just be drawn at “never use real guns or ammo on a set, use prop guns”.

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I read it kind of as that, “stop [producing] movies [while using] [real] guns!” Or something

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8 points

“no need to glorify gun violence” definitely implies “stop making any movies depicting guns at all”

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12 points

Was it a silver bullet?

Might have been a werewolf problem on set, is all I’m saying 🤷

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6 points

They also found live holy water in his bandolier

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-14 points
*

This whole thing is so bizzare. The more I think about it, the more it seems like a hit. It just seems so unlikely given how many movies have guns and zero deaths.

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43 points

Look, that was only there in case he or his similarly hot brother has to kill a demon.

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25 points

Give me a break. Dean is way hotter than Sam and it ain’t even close.

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4 points

Some people like the long-haired pretty boys. I don’t judge.

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