COPS STILL TARGET SHOOTER BALDWIN
But self-pitying whiner insists he’s cleared in movie gun death
BIGMOUTH Alec Baldwin’s crowing he’s off the hook for the shooting death of camera gal Halyna Hutchins on the set of his film Rust — but lawmen say that’s a bunch of bull!
And a shocking video taken just hours after mom of one Hutchins, 42, was fatally shot and assistant director Joel Souza wounded shows Baldwin feeling sorry for himself, whining “I don’t want to be a public person” and, incredibly, laughing with police officers.
The 64-year-old Hunt for Red October star also insists a report by New Mexico safety regulators slamming Rust brass as responsible for the tragic accident has “exonerated” him!
But the actor’s boast was crushed by Juan Ríos of the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office, who declares: “This is still an open investigation.
“Alec Baldwin hasn’t been exonerated! I can’t speak to what he’s been saying, but in terms of our case: It remains open.”
Meanwhile, Baldwin’s legal
team and PR flacks put out a positive spin, saying, “The report exonerates Mr. Baldwin by making clear that he believed the gun held only dummy rounds” adding his “authority [on the set] was limited to approving script changes and creative casting.”
A legal source adds: “That’s not an exoneration. And, as a producer of the movie, Baldwin may still have some culpability.
“It’s premature for him to take some sort of victory lap!”
A video taken three hours after the incident at the sheriff’s office catches Baldwin talking to a babysitter back home.
After asking “How are the kids?” he gripes: “I don’t want to do this anymore, I don’t, I don’t want to be a public person.”
Later, after being read his rights, Baldwin asks if he’s being charged with anything, and he and officers break into laughter.
Baldwin then spills what happened, saying: “I take the gun out slowly. I turn and cock the pistol. Bang! [Hutchins] hits the ground, she goes down. [Souza] goes down, screaming.”
A bullet tore through Souza’s arm and ripped into Hutchins.
Says Baldwin: “It’s supposed to be a cold gun. Now this is a puzzle to me. This is making me very emotional.”
State officials cited Rust producers over the Oct. 21 shooting for “plain indifference to employee safety” and a “failure to follow firearm safety procedures.”
The production company has been fined a maximum $137,000 for safety violations.