Here’s An Unpopular Take: A Gun Owner’s Defense of Alec Baldwin
Perhaps, as an Executive Producer of the film, Alec Baldwin has some culpability for the personnel and procedures on the set, and some personal responsibility definitely falls on him regarding his participation in a scene that was not staged in a completely safe manner. There are lots of rumors and possible complications in the whole story, and perhaps we’ll learn something new as the case goes to trial, but in the immediate instance of the tragedy, Alec Baldwin was just an actor following directions.
Screw rumors; I’m going by the charging documents.
Baldwin wasn’t just a hapless victim of other people who failed to follow rules. He was the primary producer responsible for making sure film industry standards for firearm safety were followed. Not only did he fail to do that, he actively ignored and evaded standards. He skipped the safety class. When the armorer tried again, he spent the short class on the phone.
The shooting that killed Hutchins occurred after the film had already experienced not one, but two negligent discharges. At that point, everyone who hadn’t already walked out, should have been on heightened alert and making sure they all did everything exactly right: including and especially Baldwin (as the person handling the firearm on camera).
Baldwin broke basic rules and industry standards, badly enough before Hutchins’ shooting that crew members quit over unaddressed safety problems.
Baldwin also exhibited a complete lack of common sense: Hey, I know. While we’re checking camera angles, I’ll point a gun at crew members and pull the trigger.
As for “schandenfreude,” allow me to repeat (again):
One more time; if I were the prosecutor, I’d present clips from interviews, and social media post of Baldwin telling everyone else how to do it right, and ask him, “Mr. Baldwin, for years you’ve claimed you know better on firearm safety than everyone else. Why are you now claiming to be dumber than a six year-old in need of constant adult supervision?”
Mr. Knox, Baldwin was charged because the information in the charging documents supported that charge. Now he goes to court to examine and attempt to explain that information, and how it isn’t his fault that he killed a woman by doing stupid shit, instead of the safer methods he chose to dispense with.
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