After the fatal shot by actor Alec Baldwin in a Hollywood shoot, lawyers are now bringing forward a nasty thesis.
Was it sabotage?
Santa Fe - It is still unclear how the fatal shot on a Hollywood set came about in which actor Alec Baldwin fatally struck a camerawoman and injured the director in the shoulder.
But the lawyers of the gun master in focus have now put a nasty thesis in the room: They brought "sabotage" into play.
According to lawyer Jason Bowles on the Today Show, someone could have put a live ammunition bullet into a can with dummy blank cartridges to sabotage the shoot.
He spoke of dissatisfied employees on the set who had complained about the working conditions, he said.
Baldwin drama on the film set: lawyers bring "sabotage" into play
The 24-year-old armorer loaded the gun with bullets from a box of dummy cartridges.
How the live ammunition got into the revolver must be investigated, said the lawyer.
At times, the weapons and ammunition on the set were not locked up, but were accessible to everyone.
In the incident during the shooting of the low-budget western "Rust" on a film ranch in Santa Fe (New Mexico) on October 21, chief cinematographer Halyna Hutchins (42) was fatally injured and director Joel Souza (48) at the Hit shoulder.
Baldwin (63), who is the main actor and producer in the film, had fired the gun during the rehearsal for a scene.
Investigations revealed that there was a real bullet in the Colt.
Baldwin's fatal shot: Armorer defends herself against allegations
On the set, investigators came across three handguns and around 500 rounds of ammunition, including blank cartridges and so-called dummy cartridges that do not contain gunpowder.
But there was probably also live ("live") ammunition among them, the investigators announced last week.
The gun master has denied allegations of negligence on the set.
The 24-year-old said in a letter through her lawyers at the end of October that she had “no idea” where the live ammunition found came from.
Another assistant director, who was also in focus, admitted that he had not strictly followed the safety precautions and had only incompletely checked the weapon.
(dpa)