Alabama's Morning News with JT
Ted Rowland of COURT TV is here to inform us on the Alec Baldwin case
5280 Exterior's James Hardy sighting is a low-maintenance sighting made primarily of cement that resists flame spread and repels wood-borne insects and woodpeckers. Through the month of July, you'll receive free, rigid foam installation with the purchase of whole-house sighting. That's installing additional insulation behind your sighting, or free, but only for the month of July. Call today for more details or visit 5280exterior's.com. 5280exterior's.com, a James Hardy preferred contractor, 5280 Exterior's, the altitude of quality. And welcome back to Alabama's Morning News. My name is John Mounts. I'm filling in for it JT. And we've been following this case for a while now, the case against Alec Baldwin. A New Mexico judge has ruled that actor Alec Baldwin's indictment will stand in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of his film, Rust. In an order on Friday, Judge Mary Marlow Summer turned down a motion by Baldwin's attorneys to dismiss the indictment. Baldwin therefore remains scheduled to go on trial today for involuntary manslaughter. Only three years ago, during the rehearsal of a scene in the Western movie on a ranch outside Santa Fe, Baldwin was holding a prop gun that had been loaded with live ammunition. The Colt 45 revolver went off, killing cinematographer Helena Hutchins and wounding director Joel Sousa. And joining me now is Ted Rollins from CourtTV Ted. Welcome to the show. Glad to be here. Thanks for having me. And it looks like today will be the big day for more action in the courtroom. What's happening? The jury selection process begins and once a jury is picked, it'll be time for the opening statements and for the trial to begin. Alec Baldwin will be in the courtroom, assuming there's no last minute deal. And he faces involuntary manslaughter charges with a maximum potential sentence if he found guilty of 18 months in prison. Even though he was the one to pull the trigger, of course, the argument was he didn't realize that that was a live round in the gun. How much responsibility does he have for checking the weapon or does it all fall on the armorer for their role in not checking the weapon? Well, that's the question of the day. Alec Baldwin's defense argues that he has no responsibility for the safety of that weapon. But Hannah Gutierrez, the armorer, that was her job to make sure that the bullets that she put into that gun were dummy rounds. She didn't do that. She didn't shake them and make sure they were not real. And then the first assistant director, David Hall, part of his job is to check the work of an armorer. That's sort of a catch to make sure that the armorer didn't make a mistake. And to say that now the actor who handed the gun told him there was a cold gun, to say that that person should be responsible, the defense argues is ridiculous. The state says, well, Alec Baldwin's experience enough, he never should have pointed a gun and pulled the trigger the way he did when he pointed it at Halloween options. Well, I think you're definitely right as an actor that he was in his role as acting and handed a gun and believed it was cold. Does he bear additional responsibility because he not only is an actor, but he also is the producer of the movie. And as the producer, you're kind of like the head honcho, the buck stops here. Well, he was one of six producers and he was a producer, quote unquote, was more to get him some more money. And that he was a producer and name only with just a little bit of editorial rights. He could change his script, but had nothing to do with safety and the set has nothing to do with logistics, firing or firing. That was the other five producers and then none of them have been charged. It could be that the reason why the charges are laying on him, not only because he pulled the trigger, but also because he is the biggest name nobody else involved in this has a name the size of his. So it makes him a bigger target and also I would imagine he has deeper pockets. Well, the deeper pockets part of the equation is great for the civil actions. And yes, he was sued civilly along with a handful of other people, and that was not unexpected. I mean, this, this was the case of somebody died on a movie set. My goodness, the family wants answers and there should be accountability. But criminally to charge him, you know, he was one of three people charged. One of the dearest found guilty David Hall, the assistant director, he pled guilty right away. So yes, I know I was wrong. And then Alec Bowler because he had the gun in his office charge and the state says it's because he was arrogant. He was running the show on the set as this arrogant actor and disregarded basic safety concerns and protocol that he should have known. It could have been catastrophic and in this case it works. And Alec Baldwin is not off skin and even on camera, but off camera, he's not the most likable guy. I don't know if you've heard the recording of that phone conversation or that message he left for his daughter that one time where he was basically cursing her out. And I think like a minor daughter and he was cursing her out on the phone. This is he's not the most likable character, but at the same time, he is afforded the same right that we as all Americans have to be innocent until proven guilty. I'm just wondering how much of that is kind of goes by the wayside because he's kind of viewed as sort of a jerk both by the American public and in Hollywood. Yeah, I mean, the jerk factor might come into play here, especially if he takes the witness state. If jurors end up at the end of the day not liking you, that's not good. So you're a defendant, you really need the jury to believe you if arrogance seeps through. That could be a problem for Alec Baldwin. And as an actor, if he does take the stand, of course, how do you know he's not acting? He's clearly very good at it. That's true. Yeah, he'll be able to do better than most. It's interesting, a criminal trial where the defendant takes the stand. It's tough to fake, even if you are an actor, you're in a very vulnerable position right next to jurors watching every move you make. And well, yes, Alec Baldwin would have a leg up on the average person, all a person taking the witness stand. If he's up there long enough, you'll get a pretty good feel of the human being that is testifying because it is such an intense scenario. Tehran from Court TV, thank you so much for joining us this morning on Alabama's Morning News. Thank you. 5280 exteriors James Hardy's sighting is a low-maintenance sighting made primarily of cement that resists flame spread and repels woodborne insects and woodpeckers. Through the month of July, you'll receive free rigid foam installation with the purchase of whole house sighting. It's installing additional insulation behind your sighting for free. But only for the month of July. Call today for more details or visit 5280 exteriors.com 5280 exteriors.com, a James Hardy preferred contractor, 5280 exteriors, the altitude of quality.