July 11, 2024, Alec Baldwin trial over ‘Rust’ movie shooting

Our live coverage of the Alec Baldwin trial has concluded for the day. Please scroll through the posts below for details on the testimony heard on Thursday.

The involuntary manslaughter trial of actor Alec Baldwin continued with more testimony Thursday — nearly three years after cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot on the New Mexico set of the Western film “Rust.”

If convicted, the actor could face up to 18 months in prison and a $5,000 fine.

Baldwin’s wife, Hilaria, along with his sister, Beth Keuchler, and brother, Stephen Baldwin, were all in the courtroom supporting the actor. Women’s rights attorney Gloria Allred also returned for the second day and was seated behind the prosecution.

Here’s what you should know:

Crime scene technician testimony:

Italian gun manufacturer testimony:

Marketing firm owner testimony:

Former detective testimony:

What could happen next: 

The involuntary manslaughter trial against Alec Baldwin has ended for the day.

The jury heard from four witnesses today, total of six all together.

The trial will continue on Friday at 11:30 a.m. ET, the judge said.

Cpl. Alexandria Hancock of the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office, who was a detective on the case at the time, previously executed a search warrant on the movie’s prop company, PDQ Arm and Prop, LLC.

Hancock told prosecutor Kari Morrissey that one of the reasons why she executed the warrant was because the father of the film’s armorer, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, told her that his good friend, Seth Kenney had live ammunition.

Hancock said she didn’t know who to believe when asking for the search warrant.

Morrissey asked if Gutierrez Reed’s dad indicated to Hancock that the ammunition at PDQ was what he thought was the same ammunition on the set of “Rust.” Hancock answers “yes.”

“Did that turn out to be true?” the prosecutor asks.

Hancock answers “no.”

A former detective who worked on the case of the “Rust” shooting says she believes the armorer on the film was the one who brought the live rounds to set.

Cpl. Alexandria Hancock, who was the primary detective, says in her interviews with Hannah Gutierrez Reed, she indicated that a box of ammunition found during the investigation was “similar to one that she would have provided.”

Hancock is the second witness to say that she believes Gutierrez Reed was the one who brought the live rounds to set. Earlier, Marissa Poppell, a crime scene technician for the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Department, also said she believes the evidence suggests that the same conclusion

Cpl. Alexandria Hancock of the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office testifies on Thursday, July 11.

Cpl. Alexandria Hancock of the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office is the next witness called to testify. She became involved in the case in 2021 when she worked as a detective with the Sheriff’s Office assigned to the violent crimes division, she said.

She says she interviewed Alec Baldwin, first assistant director David Halls and armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed.

In a search warrant affidavit in the case, Hancock had said Gutierrez told investigators, “No live ammo is ever kept on set.”

Justin Neal, the owner of a marketing firm that is responsible for the importing and distribution of Pietta Firearms, testifies the quality of the gun that was eventually involved in the shooting of Halyna Hutchins was inspected before it was sold to the prop company, PDQ Arm and Prop, LLC.

That means the gun wasn’t fired but there were checks done to make sure it functioned properly, he explains. “It was in perfect condition” before being sold to PDQ, he tells the prosecutor.

Justin Neal testifies on Thursday, July 11.

The prosecution has called Justin Neal to the stand.

He identifies himself as the owner of a marketing firm.

The firm functions as an ad agency and also recruits and manages sales representatives for its clients, Neal explains.

Alessandro Pietta, the manufacturer of the gun used during the fatal on-set shooting, is a client of Neal’s firm.

The firm is also responsible for the importing and distribution of Pietta Firearms, he tells the prosecution.

Alessandro Pietta, the manufacturer of the gun used during the fatal on-set shooting, testifies he has not seen the weapon since roughly the beginning of 2018, except on Zoom.

Pietta testifies he personally made the gun used in the incident, but says he does not know how the weapon was handled by any particular individuals after sending it out. He says his knowledge of the weapon is limited to when he last saw it physically and did not know of the condition of it on October 21, 2021, when the fatal incident occurred on the film set.

The gun involved in the fatal shooting on the “Rust” set in 2021 is seen during the testimony of gun manufacturer Alessandro Pietta on Thursday, July 11.

The manufacturer of the gun involved in the fatal shooting on the “Rust” set in 2021 testifies that the firearms went through various safety checks and testing before it was exported to the United States.

Alessandro Pietta says the guns that his company produces are tested by a national proof house that has its own quality controls. He says the proof house then shoots the gun and looks at all of the safeties.

He testifies his company also looks at all of the raw materials and has quality control checks in place, including at the assembly department and before the gun is shipped to the customer.

Prosecutor Erlinda Johnson shows the gun used in the “Rust” shooting to Pietta. He identifies that the gun was approved by the proof house, which is designated by marks on the gun

This means that “we have produced a good gun” that follows regulations and therefore can be “sold to anyone.”

“Without that marks we cannot sell or produce or export any guns,” Pietta testifies.

Alessandro Pietta testifies on Thursday, July 11.

The prosecution has called its next witness — Alessandro Pietta, the Italian manufacturer of the gun used in the shooting of Halyna Hutchins.

According to a filing by the prosecution, Pietta “is being called as an expert in the manufacturing and quality control procedures of the Pietta revolver used by Mr. Baldwin.”

The defense had previously objected to Pietta’s testimony, claiming he would not know the functional state of the firearm on the day of the shooting.

“His only knowledge of the firearm is that it was a show gun manufactured by Pietta that was shipped in proper order,” the defense said.

The court is back in session after an afternoon break.

Crime scene technician Marissa Poppell testifies that there is evidence that shows Hannah Gutierrez Reed, the armorer for “Rust,” brought the live rounds of ammunition on the set of “Rust.”

She says she saw photographs on a cellphone that featured the rounds of ammunition in the background of it.

Poppell says it is her understanding that Gutierrez Reed brought a box onto the film set that was provided by her father. She says that Seth Kenney, a good friend of Gutierrez Reed’s father, decided to bring the ammunition in after Gutierrez Reed’s conviction.

Kenney was the owner of the prop company, PDQ Arm and Prop, LLC. Gutierrez Reed sued Kenney and his company for allegedly selling her a cache of dummy ammunition with live rounds mixed in.

Poppell testifies that all the live ammunition was found in the same place: “In a box in the bottom of a stack labelled as live ammo.” She says there was no mistaking that there was live ammunition in the box due to the labelling.

We have a short break in the proceedings. The trial is set to resume at 5:20 p.m. ET.

Marissa Poppell, a crime scene technician for the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Department, is still on the stand.

Halyna Hutchins, the film’s cinematographer who was killed when she was shot on the set of “Rust” in 2021, was not killed while they were filming a scene.

“Ms. Hutchins wasn’t killed during the filming of the scene, was she?” prosecutor Kari Morrissey asks on cross-examination.

Marissa Poppell, a crime scene technician for the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Department, replies that she was not.

Poppell previously testified that she took photos of scene paperwork found at the church set where the shooting incident happened. She told the defense on cross-examination that she thought they were important because they mentioned a firearm and could potentially provide more context about what happened.

Crime scene technician Marissa Poppel says she doesn’t know if actor Jensen Ackles checked his firearm while on set or if he did any safety checks.

After the fatal shooting, Ackles’ bandolier was also found to be holding a live round of ammunition.

Marissa Poppell, a crime scene technician, said there is evidence to suggest the “Rust” armorer was the one who brought live rounds to the set, which led to a deadly shooting.

“Do you have any evidence that Seth Kenney is the source of the live rounds on ‘Rust?’” Kari Morrissey, the lead special prosecutor, asks on re-direct.

“No,” Poppell answers.

Kenney was the owner of the prop company, PDQ Arm and Prop, LLC. Hannah Gutierrez Reed, the armorer for the film, sued Kenney and his company for allegedly selling her a cache of dummy ammunition with live rounds mixed in.

Morrissey then asked Poppell if there was evidence that Gutierrez Reed was the one who brought the live rounds on set. Poppell answered that she did.

Morrissey also asked Poppell about live ammunition that her team found at PDQ as part of their investigation. Showing the crime scene technician a photo of a box, the prosecutor asked Poppell whether there could be any mistaking that it contained live ammunition.

Poppell said no, because “it was clearly marked as live ammunition in that box.”

Crime scene technician Marissa Poppell testifies on Thursday, July 11.

Under cross-examination by defense attorney Alex Spiro, crime scene technician Marissa Poppell testifies that after the guilty verdict against armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed in March, a retired police officer came in to the sheriffs office and turned over some ammunition he obtained from prop supplier Seth Kenney.

Poppel says she was directed to document the .45 caliber rounds, but they were placed into evidence separately from the other “Rust” items and were not sent to the FBI for testing.

She does not know if they match the round that killed Halyna Hutchins and injured Joel Souza.

After the judge and attorneys spent some time discussing evidentiary items that may or may not be admissible in the trial, the jury has returned after a lunch break that lasted more than 2 hours.

A crime scene technician is back on the stand on Thursday during the second day of testimony in the involuntary manslaughter trial of Alec Baldwin.

The trial left off on Wednesday with prosecutors calling their fourth witness, Marissa Poppell, the technician who works at the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Department.

The defense has been cross-examining Poppell, asking her about the evidence she took from the set and the handling of the weapon. The witness previously testified that the firearm was sent to the FBI for forensic testing, but was returned to local investigators in a dismantled state.

Here’s what we learned before today’s lunch break:

While we’re waiting for the jury to return, the judge has been hearing arguments from the attorneys about the admissibility of certain evidence.

Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer ruled that Alec Baldwin’s demeanor after the shooting can be presented to the jury, following an argument from the defense that it is not relevant.

Prosecutor Kari Morrissey pushed to present comments made by Baldwin to detectives that indicate his eagerness to return home immediately following the shooting.

“Two people are in the hospital and he doesn’t even want to stay,” Morrissey said.

Baldwin remained stoic throughout her critical comments of him, but began nodding when his attorney came to his defense, saying he made himself available and offered to stay.

Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer is meeting with the prosecution and defense to discuss evidentiary items outside the presence of the jury.

Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey interrupts as the judge begins, noting actor Alec Baldwin is not in the courtroom.

“We can’t begin without the defendant,” Morrissey says. “It’s not appropriate.”

Baldwin’s team leaves the courtroom briefly and returns with their client.

The hearing is now underway and attorneys are discussing how Baldwin’s demeanor on the day of the film shooting can be described to the jury.

Gloria Allred holds a picture of Halyna Hutchins outside a district court in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Wednesday, July 10.

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins’s mother, father and sister live in Kyiv, Ukraine, and cannot travel to the United States for the trial of Alex Baldwin, according to their advocate Gloria Allred who is in Santa Fe.

Allred said she’s almost glad that they weren’t at the trial to see the footage played on Wednesday of the “chaotic situation” as she was being treated by medics after she was shot.

“That would have been too painful,” she told CNN. “I’m here to be able to communicate with them what is happening in this criminal case.”

The family does not speak in English, she said.

Hannah Gutierrez Reed, the armorer for "Rust," listens to closing arguments in her trial at district court on March 6 in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Hannah Gutierrez Reed, the armorer for “Rust,” has been called to testify on Friday but will not cooperate, her attorney said.

Gutierrez Reed will be transported from prison to the courthouse but plans on pleading her Fifth Amendment rights, attorney Jason Bowles said.

In June, prosecutors asked the court to grant Gutierrez Reed immunity to compel her to testify, but the judge ruled against it.

“Hannah got nothing,” Bowles said. “That’s not normal.”

Gutierrez Reed was sentenced to 18 months in prison, the maximum sentence for involuntary manslaughter, in April. She has appealed that conviction.

Court is taking a lunch break, and the jury will return at 4 p.m. ET.

In the second day of the trial, the defense questioned crime scene technician Marissa Poppell.

So far, defense attorney Alex Spiro focused on the live ammunition casings found on the set of “Rust” and if an average person on set could differentiate them from dummy casings. He also honed in on the search of the supplier’s prop house.

The defense pressed a crime scene technician about the surveillance footage at the PDQ prop house as it tries to make an argument about the thoroughness of the sheriff’s department investigation.

Inside the court: This exchange in the cross-examination has elicited the most demonstrable active listening by the jury thus far. Numerous jurors are turning their heads left and right between the witness and Spiro during questioning. Some of the jurors have been actively taking notes. Baldwin has also been taking notes.

“Tell the members of the jury what you did to search for surveillance videos that satisfied you that you complied with the (search) warrant’s order. Tell the jury,” Spiro presses.

Poppell responds, “I don’t recall looking for surveillance footage.”

Pushed by Spiro that she didn’t look for the footage, Poppell says she can’t recall. The defense attorney responds that if she did look for the video, those actions would have been captured on the lapel cameras of the law enforcement officers who were also there, which Poppell says would be true.

Defense attorney Alex Spiro is poking at the specificity and thoroughness of the search on the PDQ prop house, the movie’s gun and ammunition supplier, asking crime scene technician Marissa Poppell about how exactly responsibilities were divvied up and whether every single item in the four-room warehouse was searched.

Poppell says she and two others divided the room and were searching for .45 caliber rounds, so if they found a box of .38 ammunition, they would move on. The group found a few boxes of co-mingled rounds and searched those individually.

Not every box in the prop house was searched, Poppell concedes, saying if the team found a box full of clothing, they did not dump it out and go through each item piece by piece.

Photos shown to the jury show a cluttered space filled with boxes, bags, tools, and other items. Poppell testifies that some boxes were shaken rather than searched. When asked if she and a detective joked about the search taking a long time, Poppell says she doesn’t recall that, but doesn’t deny it happened.

“I found what I believed to be all the live rounds at the warehouse,” says Poppell.

Defense attorney Alex Spiro is arguing that the live ammunition casings found on the set of “Rust” were hard to distinguish from dummy ones — unless you’re an expert.

Spiro shows photo evidence to witness Marissa Poppell, a crime scene technician, of the live ammunition and dummy ammunition that were on the “Rust” set at the time of the fatal shooting in 2021.

Spiro continues to press her, asking, “Doesn’t that Seth Kenney (the movie’s gun and ammunition supplier) round look exactly like the live round?”

Poppell responds, “Under a camera flash, I suppose it could.”

Spiro asks Poppell again to look at the two shell casings and inquires if they looked “a lot alike.”

Poppell says that she does think they look similar, but she can tell some differences.

Spiro pushes back, “But you’re a trained investigator, right?” also asking, “You have no reason to think that anybody on the set of ‘Rust’ was able to do that, do you?”

“No,” Poppell says.

An evidence photo is displayed on a screen as crime scene technician Marissa Poppell testifies on Thursday, July 11.

Marissa Poppell, a crime scene technician for the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Department, is walking through the evidence that she took from various locations related to the “Rust” shooting as part of her cross-examination by the defense.

Much of the line of questioning from defense attorney Alex Spiro is about what Poppell found in a truck housing props for the production.

She testifies that although she found live rounds elsewhere on set, she did not find any live ammunition in the prop truck when she executed a search warrant there a week after the shooting. Spiro lingers on this detail, emphasizing that investigators found live rounds “all over the set” but none in the prop truck. He also asks why Poppell and her team waited a week to search the truck, to which she replies that the search warrant needed to be written, and that she’s unsure why there was a delay.

Poppell testifies that the truck was disorganized and many of the boxes of ammunition looked similar, except for one box that had a hand-written label instead of a stamp. She testifies Seth Kenney, the owner of a prop company, was the one to write that label. Poppell previously testified that she also searched a warehouse in Albuquerque that belonged to the company.

The technician said Kenney assisted in the search of the truck, testifying that he opened a safe that housed dozens of firearms. She says she was under the impression that Kenney owned the safe.

Some background: “Rust” armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed sued Kenney’s company, PDQ Arm and Prop, LLC. In the lawsuit, she alleges Kenney sold her a cache of dummy ammunition with live rounds mixed in.

Court is back from a short break.

Attorneys are conferring again with the judge at the bench before the defense continues its cross-examination of crime scene technician Marissa Poppell.

Jensen Ackles attends New York Comic Con in October 2022. 

A live bullet was also found in the bandolier of another actor on the “Rust” movie set, according to crime scene technician Marissa Poppell.

Live rounds of ammunition were discovered on the prop cart, in a box of ammo, and also in two gun holsters — the one worn by Alec Baldwin and another worn by actor Jensen Ackles, she says.

“Mr. Ackles, another actor on the set, turns out that he as he acted, as he performed, had another live bullet in his bandolier, correct?” asks defense attorney Alex Spiro.

“Yes,” Poppell replies.

“You have no reason to think Mr. Ackles had any idea that was there, right?” Spiro continues.

“Correct,” Poppell says.

Court is taking a short break, as the defense continues to cross-examine crime scene technician Marissa Poppell.

The break comes after yet another huddle at the bench between prosecutors and defense attorneys.

Attorney Alex Spiro speaks in court on July 11.

Defense attorney Alex Spiro is now questioning Marissa Poppell about how the FBI handled the gun when they were at the scene of the “Rust” set in 2021.

Spiro asks Poppell whether she found it concerning that she found both live ammunition and props at a prop house.

“The first item that you collected that ended up broken was the prop gun, right?” Spiro asks.

“Yes,” Poppell responds.

Poppell also says she knew that someone else had touched the gun after the shooting.

Then Spiro questions Poppell about the importance of physical evidence.

“Physical evidence is critical evidence in an investigation, right?” he asks, to which Poppell responds in the affirmative.

Marissa Poppell testifies in court on Wednesday, July 10, in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The jury is now hearing from the prosecution’s fourth witness Marissa Poppell, a crime scene technician.

Poppell was first called to the stand by the prosecution on Wednesday, where she testified that she discovered five live rounds on the set of “Rust” along with one spent casting.

During her testimony, jurors were shown the gun that was allegedly used in the shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the filmset.

Poppell told the court she sent the firearm involved in the shooting to the FBI “intact” but when she got it back, its condition had changed.

The crime scene technician said she requested the gun be tested by FBI analysts for latent fingerprints, which she describes as fingerprints not visible to the naked eye. Poppell also testified that she requested a firearms-functioning test to ensure it was in “proper working order.”

The jury is being brought in for the second day of the “Rust” trial.

They are expected to start the day hearing from the prosecution’s fourth witness, crime scene technician Marissa Poppell.

The defense is up first.

Alec Baldwin attends his trial on July 11, in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The second day of Alec Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter trial is underway in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Baldwin maintains his innocence and has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Our reporters will bring you the latest updates as we get them here, but if you want to watch the proceedings in court for yourself, click the video at the top of this page to watch live.

Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer, center, presides over Alec Baldwin's trial in Santa Fe, New Mexico, on July 11. 

Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer has taken the bench in court, with the day’s testimony about to get underway.

The judge is conferring privately with the defense and prosecution before the jury is brought in.

In a trial marked by frequent clashes between each side, all parties shared a loud laugh at the bench over something inaudible to the rest of the courtroom.

Alec Baldwin is in the courtroom now, in an embrace with his wife Hilaria, who is resting both her arms on him.

Also supporting him in court is his sister, Beth Keuchler, and brother, Stephen Baldwin. They were both present in court on Wednesday. Keuchler was at times seen wiping tears from her eyes and being comforted by Stephen Baldwin outside the court room.

Women’s rights attorney Gloria Allred has returned to court for the second day and is seated behind the prosecution.

As day two of Alec Baldwin’s criminal trial begins, the actor’s attorneys are poised to strike at the government’s handling of the firearm used in the shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Court was adjourned late Wednesday while prosecutors were questioning a sheriff’s department crime scene technician who responded to the scene of the “Rust” film shooting in October 2021.

The witness testified that the firearm in question was sent to the FBI for forensic testing, but was returned to local investigators in a dismantled state. CNN previously reported that components of the gun broke apart during FBI testing.

In pre-trial motions, Baldwin’s lawyers slammed the type of testing conducted by state investigators, arguing that because the gun was destroyed, it deprived Baldwin’s team of the ability to recreate the FBI testing procedures that concluded the firearm could not be fired without pulling the trigger.

Baldwin previously told CNN he never pulled the trigger on the gun, and the actor’s legal team is expected to seize on the testing procedures when it’s their turn to cross-examine the witness this morning.

The "Rust" set is seen at Bonanza Creek Ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in October 2021.

One minute, actor Alec Baldwin and a handful of others were rehearsing a scene for the Western film “Rust.” The next, two people were bleeding from gunshot wounds – one of which would prove to be fatal – and everyone was reeling from confusion and shock.

Here’s a moment-by-moment account of what happened on the day of the fatal shooting, based on a search warrant affidavit and 911 calls:

The crew was filming on October 21, 2021, at Bonanza Creek Ranch, a Western movie set outside Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Mornings typically started with breakfast at 6:30 a.m., but that day they were behind schedule. Even with the delay, things appeared to be going smoothly, director Joel Souza told Santa Fe County Sheriff’s deputies in the affidavit.

Baldwin and crew members began rehearsing a scene in the rustic church, broke for lunch, and then returned to the set.

Assistant director Dave Halls fetched a prop gun from a cart outside the church and yelled “cold gun!,” indicating it was unloaded. He then handed it to Baldwin.

Baldwin was demonstrating a “cross draw” – pulling a gun from a holster on the opposite side of his body from his draw hand. The scene required him to point the gun toward the camera.

It was about 1:50 p.m. Souza told deputies he was viewing the scene through the camera and nearby monitors when he heard “what sounded like a whip and then a loud pop.”

Hutchins stumbled backward and slumped to the floor, clutching her stomach and saying she couldn’t feel her legs. Souza, who had been standing beside her, noticed blood on his shoulder.

Suddenly, there was chaos.

Crew members scattered. A medic tried to stop Hutchins’ bleeding while others frantically dialed 911. Sheriff’s deputies arrived shortly after the calls.

Hutchins, 42, was airlifted to a hospital some 55 miles away in Albuquerque, where she was pronounced dead. Souza, 48, suffered a gunshot wound to his right shoulder.

Read more about the shooting.

Alec Baldwin listens during his hearing in Santa Fe County District Court on July 10.

Prosecutors decided to charge actor Alec Baldwin and the film’s armorer, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, each with two counts of involuntary manslaughter after Baldwin fatally shot a cinematographer on the set of the movie “Rust” in 2021.

Gutierrez Reed became the first person to stand trial and be convicted in the case when a New Mexico judge sentenced her to 18 months in prison earlier this year.

Here’s what you need to know about the charges:

What does “involuntary manslaughter” mean?

New Mexico state law classifies involuntary manslaughter as a fourth degree felony.

“Involuntary manslaughter consists of manslaughter committed in the commission of an unlawful act not amounting to felony, or in the commission of a lawful act which might produce death in an unlawful manner or without due caution and circumspection,” according to New Mexico law.

What do prosecutors have to prove for charges to stick?

Shortly after announcing the involuntary manslaughter charges, Mary Carmack-Altwies, New Mexico’s first judicial district attorney, outlined why the on-set shooting could result in criminal charges regardless of whether it was an accident.

“Our involuntary manslaughter statute covers unintentional killings, unintentional homicides,” Carmack-Altwies said. “Unintentional means they didn’t mean to do it, they didn’t have the intent to kill, but it happened anyway – and it happened because of more than mere negligence, because they didn’t exercise due caution or circumspection, and that’s what happened here.”

Why will the case be hard for prosecutors?

CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig said the “Rust” fatal shooting case is not clear-cut negligence and includes factual issues.

First of all, Honig said, Carmack-Altwies told CNN that she doesn’t know – and “we might not ever know” – how live rounds got onto the set. Secondly, the incident happened on a movie set, and “most normal people do not know what the norms are on a movie set,” he said.

So the expertise of prop masters are heavily relied upon, but even those experts have different views on what the obligations of actors and crew members are on set, Honig said.

A promising cinematographer was killed, a director was wounded and a film production was left in shambles after actor Alec Baldwin discharged a prop gun on set while rehearsing for the Western film “Rust.”

Here’s a timeline of the incident and resulting legal cases:

The shooting:

The investigations:

Read more.

CNN’s Josh Campbell describes the emotions inside the courtroom during the first day of the trial.

Watch here:

Special prosecutors Kari Morrissey, left, and Erlinda Johnson speak in court on July 10, in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The trial of actor Alec Baldwin has featured opposing sets of attorneys well-versed in the courtroom tactics of both sides of a criminal trial.

Special prosecutors Kari Morrissey and Erlinda Johnson are in fact full-time criminal defense attorneys who were brought onto the case by Santa Fe’s First Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies to prosecute the actor.

Baldwin’s lead defense attorney, Alex Spiro, previously served as a prosecutor at the district attorney’s office in Manhattan.

Halyna Hutchins in Park City, Utah, in January 2019.

Here are some of the key figures connected to the trial:

Halyna Hutchins

Alec Baldwin

Attorney Luke Nikas, left, and actor Alec Baldwin attend the hearing on July 10, in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Luke Nikas

Kari Morrissey

Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer speaks during the hearing on July 10.

Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer

Hannah Gutierrez Reed

Joel Souza

David Halls

Alec Baldwin arrives for his hearing on Wednesday, July 10, in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The involuntary manslaughter trial of actor Alec Baldwin began with opening statements Wednesday — nearly three years after cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot on the New Mexico set of the Western film “Rust.”

If convicted, the actor could face up to 18 months in prison and a $5,000 fine.

Here’s a recap of what the prosecution and defense said, the witnesses we heard from and the footage that’s been used as evidence:

Prosecution: The prosecution accused Baldwin of playing “make-believe with a real gun.”

Defense: Baldwin’s attorneys argued the actor believed he was given a cold gun at the time of the shooting.

Law enforcement officer Nicholas Lefleur testifies on July 10.

Witnesses:

Body camera footage is played while Nicholas Lefleur testifies in court on July 10.

Video evidence: