The REAL Issue with Alec Baldwin’s “Prop” gun.
On October 21st 2021, during film rehearsal for the up and coming movie “Rust”, Alec Baldwin discharged a live round from a “prop gun” injuring director Joel Souza and killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. No charges have been filed to date.
After reading about the events that transpired there is seemingly one question on everyone’s mind, how did this “prop gun” end up firing a live round and killing Halyna Hutchins. Surely a “prop” should not be capable of such things.
It comes as no shock to learn that this “prop” was nothing more than a regular run of the mill handgun that was intended To fire a blank round. In reality there was nothing about this that made it a “prop”. Guns are not toys and should not be treated as such, ever. The mere fact the firearm was capable of firing any form or round, live or blank, indicates that there is nothing that separates this so called “prop” from any other handgun intended to fire live ammunition.
Gun safety should always be at the forefront for anyone holding or in proximity of any form of firearm, real or not. What should be common sense, unfortunately seems to be the biggest common issue when it comes to individuals handling firearms, which is the Golden rule of gun safety; you should NEVER aim any form of firearm, loaded or not, real or fake, in the direction of another person. Once again Guns are not toys, not “props”, and should not be handled as such.
Baldwin, an avid gun control activist, neglected to practice proper firearm safety while handling the alleged “prop”. The National Rifle Association outlines three major steps everyone should take to ensure the safe handling of firearms; Always keep the gun pointed in a safe direction, always keep your finger away from the trigger until ready to safely fire, and always keep the gun unloaded until ready to fire. Regardless of the gun was being used as a prop or not, it was Baldwin’s responsibility to be an educated handler of the firearm and use it safely.
While there is a large backing supporting a visibly distraught and traumatized Alec Baldwin claiming it was not his fault, and rather the person responsible for preparing the “prop”, we simply cannot shift the blame because of how someone feels after the fact. Naturally the prop director responsible for having a live round on set to begin with should be held accountable for his negligence, but at the end of the day Alec Baldwin is still responsible for pulling the trigger that took someone’s life. Surprisingly, at the time of writing this article no charges have been filed against Baldwin or anyone else on the production end of the film. Only time will tell if Alec Baldwin will ever face the consequences of his actions, or if the actor producer will find his way out of the involuntary murder of his crew member. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of Halyna Hutchins.
At the end of the day you can call it whatever you like, but a firearm that has the ability to discharge any form or round, live or blank, is NOT a prop. With the unimaginably large budget most of these Hollywood movies have it is extremely unfortunate there is not some law or regulation for mock firearms to be made and used in place of real, functioning ones.
-Style
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