Another Shooting

[Slim Cognito]

What else could they say? Alec Baldwin is above reproach?

Not saying he should be charged. Just saying we don't yet know enough to make the call.

[neeneko]

The trial still has not taken place.

The US really needs to work on the whole 'speedy trial' thing.

Defendants routinely waive their right to a speedy trial, for a variety of reasons.

And prosecutors often agree to continuances, again for a variety of reasons.

I get that it is not always the prosecution or the state that ask for the lengthy pre-trial period, but even the defense requesting it speaks to a system with, well, systemic issues. Waiving a speedy trial, by choice, means that the current framework means the alternative is worse for them than rotting in jail for potentially years.

[bob]

I get that it is not always the prosecution or the state that ask for the lengthy pre-trial period

In the United States, prosecutors rarely ask for a trial to be delayed over a defendant's objection. Because of their speedy-trial rights.

Waiving a speedy trial, by choice, means that the current framework means the alternative is worse for them than rotting in jail for potentially years.

One of the most common reasons defendants waive a speedy trial is to conduct further investigation. Between going to trial unprepared or going to trial later and more prepared, the system ultimately trusts defendants are making the best choices for their circumstances.

Obviously those defendants detained pending trial have higher consequences for waiving a speedy trial versus those who are not detained.

[Foggy]

Too also, many defendants know that at the end of the road, they are going to take a plea bargain, or if they go to trial, they face a good chance of being convicted. And in many cases, they know they're going to be in custody for a lot longer than the delay in trial, no matter how many court appearances they have to make.

So when your lawyer says "I need some time to work on this aspect of your case," a lot of defendants understand completely and make no objection. They're not going anywhere, and if the lawyer can come up with something that reduces their overall sentence, it's worth it to keep bumping the case along bit by bit.

[bob]

What else could they say? Alec Baldwin is above reproach?

A prosecutor could say, "After our office's review of the facts and the law, charges against Mr. Baldwin are not warranted."

My WAG is someone other than Baldwin in the gun's chain of custody will be charged, but not Baldwin.

Not saying he should be charged. Just saying we don't yet know enough to make the call.

Which is what the intended message was. But our clickbait-y world wants you to think charges against Baldwin are pending.

* * *

And in many cases, they know they're going to be in custody for a lot longer than the delay in trial, no matter how many court appearances they have to make.

Relatedly, some defendants would prefer to serve their time in the local jail, rather than in prison. So sometimes there are some non-legal strategic reasons to seek a delay.

[noblepa]

Relatedly, some defendants would prefer to serve their time in the local jail, rather than in prison. So sometimes there are some non-legal strategic reasons to seek a delay.

Even if the ultimate sentence is several years in prison, the defendant usually spends his/her pretrial detention in the local county or city jail, which they may consider preferable to state prison. They are usually given credit "for time served", which is deducted from their prison time.

So, if they are ultimately sentenced to three years in prison, but spend a year in the county jail awaiting trial, they only have to spend two years in state prison.

I believe, also, that the defendant must explicitly waive their right to a speedy trial. I don't believe that the prosecution can ask for an extension if the defense does not waive a speedy trial. I seem to remember a rather high-profile case in the last couple of years, in which the defendant refused to waive speedy trial, forcing the prosecution to go to trial before they were completely ready.

[Foggy]

I suspect the armorer may be charged - apparently she allowed the gun to be used with real bullets during times when they weren't working. Is that solid? If they can nail down the person responsible for a real bullet being in the gun, that person will be charged, I reckon.

And Halls, the guy who yelled "Cold gun!" Which doesn't really mean "no live ammo". It means "I have personally inspected this gun, and I am competent to do that, and this gun has no live ammo." Whatever he did, he didn't competently inspect the gun himself, so he had no business yelling "Cold gun!" to anybody. He's the guy fired from a previous movie for accidental gun discharges, but that might not be allowed in evidence in a criminal trial.

These are just guesses, IANAL.

[AndyinPA]

The case in Pittsburgh was just in the news last week. I don't remember the details, but it was about some motion or other. I think they are talking about the trial possibly starting in the spring.

[noblepa]

Why aren't insurance companies doing more to prevent this? Movie production usually has huge insurance policies to cover the losses in the event that one of the principle stars gets hurt.

Do the production companies carry liability policies? I would think that they would, to cover possible damage that might be done to private property when shooting on location, or to cover actors, crew or bystanders who might be hurt during production.

If such policies are written, I would think that the insurance companies would insist on safety rules being strictly enforced. Some of the safety risks that we've discussed in this thread ARE in fact, covered by standard operating procedures designed to prevent such accidents, but that, in this case, those rules weren't followed.

I know that in some businesses, such as manufacturing, insurance companies will audit the factory's compliance with safety rules and force the owners to follow the rules or risk losing their insurance, or increasing the premiums. Why not do the same with movie productions? It is in the insurer's interest to prevent such accidents.

[RTH10260]

Dave Halls, the assistant director, said he did not thoroughly check the gun he handed to Alec Baldwin, according to an affidavit.

By Graham Bowley, Julia Jacobs and Simon Romero
Oct. 27, 2021

Dave Halls, the assistant director on the film “Rust,” told an investigator that he had not checked all of the rounds in the gun he handed to Alec Baldwin, as he should have, according to an affidavit released Wednesday.

He said that the film’s armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, had opened the gun for him to inspect, according to the affidavit.

“He advised he should have checked all of them, but didn’t, and couldn’t recall if she spun the drum,” according to the affidavit. He said he remembered seeing only three rounds.


https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/27/movi ... check.html

[zekeb]

It appears the no people there had any firearms safety training at all. Just think, a large majority of those who carry concealed carry permits have about the same amount of training.

[roadscholar]

Anyone arguing that Baldwin should have checked the gun, just consider why there are Armorers assigned on movies:

The actor handed the gun might be, say, Sandra Bullock. Or Chevy Chase.

[RVInit]

I can understand an actor believing he had been handed a safe weapon when there are both an armorer and an assistant director checking the gun. Or I guess in this case it would be "supposedly" or even "failing" to check the gun. Baldwin must be absolutely devastated. If it were me I would be blaming myself regardless of how many other people were supposed to check the gun first. And screaming for the universe to turn back time so I could make the choice to double check it myself. What a horrible tragedy.

[zekeb]

We'd shoot "blanks" when I was doing Civil War reenactments. Well not quite blanks - about 50 grain of 3F black power and a piece of wadded paper stuffed down the barrel. The paper would fly out about 20 feet, sometimes causing a fire if the grass was really dry. Even at this, we were told to never shoot anywhere but above the heads of those in front of us. Every so often some dufus would forget what he was doing and leave the ram rod in his gun barrel.

[Sam the Centipede]

"Reenactments"? Are you sure you don't mean "training" Zeke?

[RTH10260]

Texas shocked by killing of motorist who pulled into man’s driveway
Terry Turner’s defense to claim murder of Adil Dghoughi, a Muslim who immigrated to the US from Morocco, falls under rubric of ‘stand your ground’ law

Erum Salam
Fri 29 Oct 2021 10.00 BST

Controversial laws in Texas that can effectively allow homeowners to kill people coming on to their property are to be thrown into the spotlight after the shocking case of a Moroccan man who was shot dead after pulling over in the driveway of a San Antonio-area house, possibly because he was lost.

Adil Dghoughi, 31, was killed earlier this month by the homeowner Terry Turner, who has been charged with murder.

Turner’s lawyers say they will defend their client under the rubric of Texas’s stand-your-ground law and castle doctrine that allows homeowners to use deadly force against someone on their property if the actions are seen as immediately necessary.




https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/202 ... der-charge

[Slim Cognito]

Not long after I moved to SWFL, some asshole in my town shot a door-to-door salesman for walking up to him in his pickup truck. Then, after the victim fell to the ground, the asshole got out of his truck, pointed the gun directly at his head and fired again, killing him.

Neighbors came running as they heard the shots, one neighbor, an off-duty deputy, disarmed the asshole and held him until authorities showed up.

He tried using the stand-your-ground bullshit* (this wasn't long after Trayvon Martin's murder), but this time it didn't work. He's in prison. Let's hope the same thing happens in Texas.

*He swore the salesman approached him in a threatening manner, but nobody bought it.

[p0rtia]

I was afraid for my life, says the white dude with the gun.

Most disgusting law/concept in this country.

Okay, there are probably others.

[noblepa]

Anyone arguing that Baldwin should have checked the gun, just consider why there are Armorers assigned on movies:

The actor handed the gun might be, say, Sandra Bullock. Or Chevy Chase.

I don't think that Alec Baldwin, Sandra Bullock, Chevy Chase or any other actor should be allowed to handle a gun on set unless/until they have demonstrated knowledge of basic gun safety, including how to check the rounds, as well as a willingness to follow those procedures.

Even if an actor is rich enough to afford a chauffeur, if they choose to get behind the wheel of their Ferrari or Porsche, we still expect them to have a driver's license and know how to safely operate a car.

[roadscholar]

That would be a good idea, but… they have a union. And the unions for each facet of the industry have firmly defined duties and responsibilities.

In even small theatre companies, there’s a Fight Director, and the weapons, how they are used, and when, are his or her duty.

[Uninformed]

For those interested, a video about movie blank-firing guns. Not much about revolvers but most of the dangers/issues discussed apply. The ending is a “demonstration” of various guns.

[bob]

CNN: Alec Baldwin speaks out about Halyna Hutchins and guns on sets:

"I'm not allowed to make any comments because it's an ongoing investigation," Baldwin told those gathered. "I've been ordered by the Sheriff's Department in Santa Fe. I can't answer any questions about the investigation. I can't."

There's some Double-Secret Fifth Amendment right there: "You are compelled to remain silent. Anything you say will be a violation of the law."

(I get that Baldwin might be being dramatic, overstating, overwhelmed, transposing his attorney's advice, etc.)

[filly]

(CNN)A shooting at a Halloween party in Texarkana, Texas, left one person dead and nine others injured, the Texarkana Police Department said Sunday.

Officers responded to reports of a shooting at Octavia's Event Center in the 2300 block of Texas Boulevard shortly before midnight and "encountered a large number of people running from the building and several inside suffering from gunshot wounds," the Texarkana Police Department said in a statement on Facebook. Texarkana is about 180 miles east of Dallas.

At the time of the shooting, a few hundred people were inside the venue, police said.
Victims were taken to Wadley Regional Medical Center and Christus St. Michael Hospital, police said.
One 20-year-old man died shortly after being admitted to the hospital, police said in the statement. His name is being withheld until family can be notified.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/31/us/texas ... index.html

[filly]

18-year-old killed, 3 other teens shot at N. Houston Halloween partyHOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Police are in search of the shooters responsible for killing an 18-year-old woman and injuring three other teenagers at a Halloween party in north Houston.

It happened at around 12:45 a.m. Sunday at a home in the 1900 block of Schilder Drive.

Police said a shooting unfolded when an argument broke out between two groups of teens at what they described as a jam-packed party. They said they found bullets had gone through the back of the home.

Among the injured is a 16-year-old boy, according to HPD.

https://abc13.com/18-year-old-killed-ha ... /11185326/

[Volkonski]

The brave new world of everyone in Texas carrying a gun.