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The Rust<\/em> <\/a>shooting case\u2014where Alec Baldwin negligently fired a .45 Long Colt round that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounded director Joel Souza on October 21, 2021\u2014keeps coming up in the news despite the case being nearly 4 years old<\/a>. <\/p>\n My latest dive into this mess comes courtesy of James Reeves\u2019 new YouTube series interviewing Hollywood armorer Bryan Carpenter to get answers from the expert witness in the Alec Baldwin case. Their Part 2 discussion covers Carpenter\u2019s insider perspective in this sensitive case, and Reeves also goes on to question how this incident might color future productions and what kind of mistakes actually need to happen in order to lead to this type of accident on a Hollywood set.<\/p>\n Right off the bat, Carpenter doesn\u2019t mince words. According to him, the set was a circus of incompetence. Negligent discharges were routine\u2014stunt performers mishandling loaded lever-actions, crew pointing guns at kids, even the prop master popping off a round. The young armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed<\/a>, was in over her head, leaving live rounds intermingled with dummies. <\/p>\n Even basic safety checks like shaking the rounds to listen for the sound of loose bbs in the cases (indicating that they are blanks) were not performed on set by anyone. Then there\u2019s Baldwin, who called for his \u201creally\u201d\u2014a real Colt Single Action Army revolver\u2014during a rehearsal. Why a live firearm for a dry run? Carpenter\u2019s blunt: \u201cUnnecessary. A good armorer says no. Use a Nerf gun.\u201d<\/p>\n