The armourer on the Rust film set where cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot dead by Alec Baldwin’s prop gun has made her first court appearance.
Hannah Gutierrez, 25, appeared via video link in front of a New Mexico judge, where she was read the felony charges against her and informed of her rights.
Gutierrez is charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter in the death of 42-year-old Ms Hutchins in 2021, and one count of tampering with evidence.
Both counts carry a maximum penalty of 18 months in prison.
Image: Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot dead in 2021. Pic: Swen Studios
State prosecutors filed the latest charge of evidence tampering in June.
They claim Gutierrez transferred narcotics to another person “with the intent to prevent the apprehension, prosecution or conviction of herself”.
Witnesses told investigators Gutierrez “was drinking heavily and smoking marijuana in the evenings during the shooting of Rust,” the prosecutors’ filing said.
Gutierrez’s lawyer Jason Bowles called the filing “shocking… with no evidence to support it” in a statement at the time.
Image: Alec Baldwin on the set of Rust. Pic: Sante Fe Police
In Wednesday’s court appearance, New Mexico special prosecutor Kari Morrissey told the court she has evidence Gutierrez has suffered “a significant substance abuse problem” and asked that she undergoes random drug testing to meet the conditions of her release.
Advertisement
Mr Bowles said he opposed this and had seen no such evidence.
New Mexico judge Mary Marlowe Sommer denied the state’s request for drug testing, calling it an “ambush to Mr Bowles”.
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for 1 August 2023, ahead of a preliminary trial.
Involuntary manslaughter charges against Mr Baldwin were formally dropped on 21 April 2023.
Ms Hutchins’s husband Matthew Hutchins is now an executive producer on the film, and has settled a wrongful death lawsuit against Mr Baldwin and Rust Movie Productions out of court.
Marcel The Shell cinematographer Bianca Cline was hired to complete the project, and is donating her salary to charity in Ms Hutchins’ memory.
A huge fire has destroyed the main stage of a major festival in Belgium – two days before it was due to begin.
Tomorrowland is a dance music event as big as Glastonbury – and David Guetta was due to perform.
Footage showed flames and thick plumes of black smoke engulfing the stage and spreading to nearby woodland on Wednesday.
Image: The fire gutted the main stage
Image: Fire crews attempt to bring the blaze under control
The annual festival in the town of Boom, north of Brussels, is one of the biggest in Europe and attracts about 400,000 people over two consecutive weekends.
It is famous for its immersive and elaborate designs and attracts big names within dance music – including Guetta, best known for tracks When Love Takes Over and Titanium.
Dutch DJs Martin Garrix and Charlotte de Witte were also due to perform, along with the likes of Swedish House Mafia, Eric Prydz and Alok.
Image: Black smoke could be seen rising into the sky
The festival’s website described the creative elements which went into the elaborate main stage.
More on Belgium
Related Topics:
The theme, described as Orbyz, was “set in a magical universe made entirely out of ice” and “full of mythical creatures”.
Organisers said no one was injured in the blaze but confirmed “our beloved main stage has been severely damaged”, adding they were “devastated”.
Spokesperson Debby Wilmsen added: “We received some truly terrible news today. A fire broke out on the Tomorrowland site … and our main stage was essentially destroyed there, which is truly awful.
“That’s a stage that took years to build, with so much love and passion. So I think a lot of people are devastated.”
Image: Spokesperson Debby Wilmsen told reporters ‘a lot of people are devastated’
Despite the fire, Tomorrowland organisers said they were still expecting 38,000 festivalgoers at DreamVille, the event’s campsite.
An American Idol TV executive and her husband have been found dead in their LA home.
Robin Kaye was a music supervisor on the long-running reality TV series.
The bodies of the 70-year-old and her husband Thomas were discovered after officers conducted a welfare check at their home.
Both had died from gunshot wounds.
Image: Robin Kaye and her husband Thomas. Pic: Facebook
Detectives say Raymond Boodarian has been arrested in connection with their deaths.
It is alleged the 22-year-old had burgled their property while they were away on 10 July – killing the couple upon their return.
According to Los Angeles Police, there were “no signs of forced entry or trouble” at the property.
More from US
Ms Kaye was an industry veteran – and had previously worked on shows including Lip Sync Battle and The Singing Bee, as well as several Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants.
In a statement, an American Idol spokesperson said: “Robin has been a cornerstone of the Idol family since 2009 and was truly loved and respected by all who came in contact with her.
“Robin will remain in our hearts forever and we share our deepest sympathy with her family and friends during this difficult time.”
Huge steel fences have been erected to prevent ticketless fans from watching the Oasis reunion tour in Manchester.
Liam and Noel Gallagher will resume their sold-out run of shows – their first since 2009 – with a performance at Heaton Park tonight, and two more on Saturday and Sunday.
While tens of thousands bought tickets for Oasis’sfirst two shows last weekend, crowds gathered to glimpse the large screens above the stage in the distance – in an area dubbed “Gallagher Hill” by some on social media.
Image: People walk past a temporary security fence erected ahead of concerts by Oasis in Heaton Park on 1 July. Reuters file pic
Manchester City Council has now said more steel fences have been erected around parts of the park to prevent ticketless fans from watching the gigs, and to protect nature in the park.
“After taking stock of how the first two nights went, additional measures have now been deemed necessary and will be in place for the next three concerts,” it said.
“The erection of the fencing has a dual purpose – both to protect the environment from further damage and to dissuade people from gathering there.
“The necessary measure means the concert will no longer be visible from this area.”
More on Manchester
Related Topics:
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
1:23
Friday: Excited fans at Oasis homecoming gig
The fences will cover a large area of the hill within the park’s cattle field, which is being developed as a new woodland area with around 300 young trees planted.
The council added that there would be no facilities for people without a ticket, and said the event area is “double-walled with solid high security fencing all the way round”.
More than 2,000 event security staff and police officers will also be on duty around the site “to ensure both the safety and wellbeing of ticket-holders and that only those who have tickets access the concert”, it said.
John Hacking, the council’s executive member for employment, skills and leisure, also said in a statement that “unfortunately our hand has been forced in having to put these additional measures in place”.
He added: “Our advice to music fans who don’t have tickets for the concerts is to head into the city centre instead.
“The whole city is going all out to celebrate and help everyone have a good time.
“We’ve got some fantastic things going on with a real party atmosphere for everyone to enjoy, whether they’ve got tickets for the Oasis gigs or not.”