FBI accidental discharge tests determined that the F.lli Pietta single action revolver in .45 Colt caliber (.45 Long Colt) required a trigger to fire.
With the hammer at the quarter and half-cock positions, the gun “could not be fired without pulling the trigger,” the report states.
He added that the gun could not detonate “without pulling the trigger when the hammer was struck directly.” This response is normal for this type of revolver, according to the report.
The report, first reported by ABC-TV, contradicts what Baldwin claimed in a December interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos. Baldwin then said he did not pull the gun’s trigger.
“The trigger was not pulled,” he said. “I didn’t pull the trigger.”
Reps for Baldwin and Hannah Gutierrez Reed, who controlled the guns on set, have not responded to the report.
Santa Fe County Sheriff’s investigators say they received the completed forensic reports from the FBI on Aug. 2, which were then sent to the New Mexico Office of the Medical Examiner for review. “The IMO had advised the sheriff’s office that they required these forensic reports to complete their investigation,” said a statement from the sheriff’s office, which received the reports Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Santa Fe County Sheriffs are continuing to work with the Suffolk County Police Department and the First Judicial District Attorney’s Office to obtain, process and release Oscar-nominated Baldwin’s phone records. Once the office reviews the IMO files and Baldwin’s phone records, they will send the final Rust case file to the Santa Fe District Attorney’s office for final charging decisions.
“The District Attorney’s Office has been working with the Suffolk County PD and Baldwin’s attorney to acquire the phone records. Once the Suffolk County PD completes agency assistance and submits these records in New Mexico law enforcement, our detectives will need to thoroughly review these phone records for evidentiary purposes,” Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said.
The Santa Fe District Attorney’s office did not respond to a request for comment on the status of the investigation.
Baldwin’s attorney said in April that the OSHA investigation “exonerates” Baldwin. The report (read a summary here) concluded that management at Rust Movie Productions LLC “knew that firearms safety procedures were not being followed on set and demonstrated a clear disregard for employee safety by failing to review work practices and take corrective action” when the fatal incident occurred. On Oct. 21, when Baldwin, the star of such films as The Aviator and Boss Baby, received full clearance from the First AD to fire a prop gun, it took Hutchins’ life.
Recently, Rust script supervisor Mamie Mitchell’s lawsuit against Baldwin and other producers was rescheduled for September 28. Judge Michael E. Whitaker moved the hearing to give the plaintiff the option and time to file an amended complaint. Mitchell was standing next to Hutchins when he was fatally shot and claims gross negligence on the New Mexico set and that the scene Baldwin was rehearsing never asked him to fire the gun.
Anthony D’alessandro and Dominic Patten contributed to this report.