Death on the set of 'Rust': a new chapter, a new lawsuit

It happened on October 21, 2021. More than three months have passed, but the accidental death of Halyna Hutchins on the set of 'Rust' continues to generate news and, above all, lawsuits. Who is accusing whom now?

While filming the western 'Rust' in New Mexico, actor Alec Baldwin was preparing to shoot a scene when his prop gun accidentally went off. It hit director Joel Souza (a wound in the shoulder) and cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Firing off real bullets instead of blanks, the gun killed Hutchins almost instantly.

According to TMZ, the doctor responsible for security on the set, Cherlyn Schaefer, has sued Hannah Gutiérrez-Reed, the person responsible for the armory, and Dave Halls, the production assistant.

The doctor blames Reed and Halls as directly responsible for giving Alec Baldwin the loaded gun with which he accidentally shot Halyna Hutchins. The actor himself is not part of the suit.

Who will also have to answer before the judge is Sarah Zachry, head of props. Schaefer accuses Zachry of being aware - or having the responsibility of being aware - that the gun had real bullets. Sarah Zachry's lawyer told TMZ that his client did not load the weapon, nor did she handle it on the day of the accident. For that reason he claims "she did nothing wrong".

TMZ gathers from the legal documentation that the doctor has also sued the producers of 'Rust'. She alleges that negligence on the part of the production team not only ended the life of Halyna Hutchins but also caused her serious emotional distress.

The lawsuit points to Cherlyn Schaefer as the first person to offer medical assistance to Halyna Hutchins right after she was shot.

The doctor recalls that she desperately fought to save Hutchins' life, squeezing her wounds, applying an oxygen mask and checking her vital signs.

Cherlyn Schaefer also claims that it was her who called the Emergency Room to send a medical helicopter to the film set.

Although the helicopter arrived quickly to transport the director of photography to the hospital, she died in the ER.

After recounting the facts, Cherlyn Schaefer claims that she suffered "tremendous shock, trauma and severe emotional anguish" since the day of the accident.

According to TMZ, the doctor blames the entire accident on the poor security measures on the set of 'Rust.' Its production team is responsible for that.

What's more, Schaefer says she hasn't been hired as a doctor on films sets as much as before she worked with 'Rust.'

Cherlyn Schaefer explains in the court document obtained by TMZ that the impact of the accident has been so profound that doctors recommended her to refrain from working on film sets, both as a doctor or in any other capacity.

As judicial processes have yet to begin, it remains to be seen how many of the lawsuits filed against 'Rust' producers and staff are going to be successful.

In any case, 'Rust' is clearly a film project whose off-screen story will go on for a long time.