'Rust' armorer released from prison early after fatal on-set shooting death

The armorer convicted in connection with the deadly on-set shooting during the production of Rust is now out of prison.

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter earlier this year, was released Friday morning, according to the New Mexico Corrections Department.

She had been serving an 18-month sentence for her role in the 2021 incident in which actor Alec Baldwin fired a prop gun that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Gutierrez-Reed’s release took place in Arizona, near the Nevada and California borders. A corrections spokesperson, Brittany Roembach, said she will now be under both probation and parole supervision at the same time. She is required to remain on parole for one year in the manslaughter case, according to NBC News.

In a separate legal matter, she had previously been charged with unlawfully carrying a firearm in a licensed liquor store. That case resulted in an 18-month probation term, which is now also underway.

Gutierrez-Reed, 26 at the time of her conviction, was sentenced in April after a New Mexico jury found her guilty of involuntary manslaughter and acquitted her of tampering with evidence.

She had been held at the Western New Mexico Correctional Facility in Grants.

Although inmates in the state typically serve less than 60 percent of their sentence due to earned credits, Gutierrez-Reed had to serve at least 85 percent of hers. That threshold, while not applied in all manslaughter cases, was triggered in her case because it met New Mexico’s definition of a “serious violent offense” under certain circumstances.

Roembach explained that Gutierrez-Reed was credited with early release due to time served before sentencing, participation in a residential addiction program, and monthly good behavior credits.

The fatal accident occurred while Baldwin was rehearsing a scene at Bonanza Creek Ranch in Santa Fe County. Gutierrez-Reed was responsible for all on-set firearms at the time

Prosecutors argued that she failed in that responsibility. “She was negligent, she was careless, she was thoughtless,” special prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey told the jury.

The movie Rust, which Baldwin both starred in and produced, was eventually completed and released earlier this month, over  three years after the shooting that brought filming to a halt.

Baldwin faced charges of involuntary manslaughter twice. The first set of charges was dropped in April 2023. The second case was dismissed with prejudice after a judge ruled that the prosecution had withheld evidence that might have been relevant to Baldwin’s defense.