Guilty Pleasures
By NewsPress Now
Ammo supplier says he provided no live rounds in shooting of cinematographer
SANTA FE, N.M. | An ammunition supplier testified at trial Monday that he only provided inert dummy rounds to the Western film “Rust” where actor Alec Baldwin fatally shot a cinematographer in 2021, though he also was handling live rounds from another production at that time.
Albuquerque-based movie firearms and ammunition supplier Seth Kenney took the stand at the trial of “Rust” movie armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who is charged with involuntary manslaughter and evidence tampering in the death of cinematagropher Halyna Hutchins.
Kenney told a jury he cleaned and repackaged ammunition to “Rust” that was previously supplied to a production in Texas, handing off a box of 50 inert dummy rounds containing no gunpower to the “Rust” props supervisor on Oct. 12, 2021.
Kenney also said he scrubbed the exterior of the rounds and cleaned out residue inside in each of them to ensure the telltale rattle of a metal pellet inside dummy rounds could be heard for safety purposes.
The outcome of trial may hinge on testimony about the source of six live rounds discovered on the “Rust” set — including the one from Baldwin’s gun. Live ammunition is expressly prohibited on movie sets by the industry and union guidelines.
Prosecutors say Gutierrez-Reed is to blame for unwittingly bringing live ammunition on set and that she flouted basic safety protocols for weapons handling. She has pleaded not guilty.
Defense attorneys say their client is being smeared and unfairly scapegoated for problems beyond her control, including Baldwin’s handling of the weapons. On Monday, they highlighted images of Kenney’s “cluttered” business, a storage system without written inventories, and Kenney’s “hazy” recollection of his timeline for receiving live rounds for another production.
Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer on “Rust,” was separately indicted by a grand jury last month on an involuntary manslaughter charge in connection with the fatal shooting of Hutchins. He has pleaded not guilty, and his trial is scheduled for July.
Baldwin was pointing the gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal on the set outside of Santa Fe when the gun went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza.
In Monday’s testimony, Kenney said he provided “Rust” props master Sarah Zachry, who also managed weapons and ammunition for the production, with dummy ammunition retrieved from a props storage truck on the Texas set of the television series “1883.”
“Did you ever give any live ammunition to Sarah Zachry?” prosecutor Kari Morrissey asked Kenney. He responded, “No.”
Responding to additional questions, Kenney said Monday that didn’t have any ammunition that looked like the live rounds investigators found on the set of “Rust.”
At the same time, Kenney acknowledged he stored live rounds that were used in a live-ammunition shooting exercise for actors on “1883,” arranged at a private ranch of series creator Taylor Sheridan.
Kenney said the live rounds from that shooting exercise were brought back to his shop, stored in a bathroom within a gray plastic container marked “live rounds” on the outside.
The live rounds were initially provided to “1883” by Gutierrez-Reed’s step-father, the Hollywood sharp shooter and weapons consultant Thell Reed.
Investigators from the Santa Fe sheriff’s office searched Kenney’s Albuquerque supply shop several weeks after the fatal shooting, seizing live rounds that were sent to the FBI for analysis and comparison with live rounds discovered on the set of “Rust.”
Defense attorney Jason Bowles has argued that Kenney wasn’t properly investigated for his role as a “Rust” supplier. Bowles on Monday highlighted the fact that the search of Kenney’s business took place about a month after the fatal shooting.
Kenney’s testimony also delved into his disagreements with Gutierrez-Reed about her job performance on the set of “Rust” in connection with a gun misfire — prior to the fatal shooting.
Testimony Monday also delved into evidence related to a tampering charge against Gutierrez-Reed. That charge stems from accusations that she handed a small bag of possible narcotics to another crew member after the shooting to avoid detection.
A crew member from food services testified that she went to Gutierrez-Reed’s hotel room the evening after the fatal shooting to keep the armorer company at the request of a union steward. She said Gutierrez-Reed handed her some white powder in a plastic baggie within another baggie, and that she felt insulted and threw it into a hallway garbage container after leaving the room.
“In fairness, you probably had five seconds to look at this bag, is that right?” said Bowles, the defense attorney. “You have a belief, but you don’t know for certain, what was in that bag.”
Taylor Swift struck a deal with Singapore
MELBOURNE, Australia | Taylor Swift stole the show at an Asian summit Tuesday when Singapore’s leader was prompted to defend his tiny country’s exclusive concert deal with the singer that risks bad blood in the region by preventing her from performing in neighboring nations.
Singapore is a key member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, a 10-nation bloc known as ASEAN. Its three-day summit was expected to focus on member Myanmar’s humanitarian crisis and conflicts in the South China Sea.
Instead, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was grilled on the summit’s sidelines about a lucrative and exclusive deal his city-state struck with Swift that prevents the singer from taking her Eras Tour to any other stop in Southeast Asia.
Swift is performing six concerts from March 2 to 9 in Singapore, and some Southeast Asian neighbors complain that the Singapore deal deprives them of the tourism boom her concerts bring to hosts. Her Eras Tour shattered records when it reportedly surpassed $1 billion last year, and her film adaptation of the tour quickly took No. 1 at the box office and became the highest-grossing concert film to date.
The Singaporean leader confirmed Tuesday that Swift was provided with “certain incentives” in exchange for making Singapore her only Southeast Asian destination on her Eras Tour. Lee defended the deal at a joint news conference with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, a self-professed Swiftie whose Spotify Wrapped list boasted Taylor Swift as his second most streamed artist of 2023. Albanese is hosting the summit in Melbourne, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of Australia becoming ASEAN’s first external partner.
Lee did not reveal the cost of the exclusive deal, which was paid for from a government fund established to rebuild tourism after COVID-19 disruptions. He also did not directly answer when asked if he had encountered bad blood among other leaders due to the deal, instead suggesting that if Singapore hadn’t struck an exclusive deal, a neighboring country might have done so.
“It has turned out to be a very successful arrangement. I don’t see that as being unfriendly,” Lee said.
Thailand’s Prime Minister, Srettha Thavisin, brought attention to the deal in February with a public claim that a promoter told him the Singaporean government subsidized the concerts with around $2 million to $3 million per show with a condition that the artist not play anywhere else in Southeast Asia.
Srettha said that if he had known about the deal before, he was confident he would be able to pull off something similar.
But Thailand doesn’t hold it against Singapore, said Prommin Lertsuridej, the Secretary-General of the Prime Minister. He told reporters in a group interview Monday that Thailand took what Singapore did as an example, and while Thailand already has some laws in place to allow such incentive packages, the government is working to remove red tape and make Thailand a more attractive venue for international events.
“We learn from each other,” Prommin said, adding that he admired Singapore for being able to come up with and achieve this “good business idea.”
In February, Indonesian Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno took to Instagram to apologize to Swift’s fans, saying: “International music events, such as Taylor Swift concerts, do have a big impact on a country’s economy. But I’m sorry Swifties, Taylor Swift hasn’t stopped by in Indonesia yet. Bought out by Singapore. However, this is a lesson for us.”
Raisa Christy, a 37-year-old fan living in Jakarta, Indonesia, said she regretted that Swift’s closest stop by far was in Singapore. However, she believes it’s the only spot in the region that has the capabilities and infrastructure that meet Swift’s standards.
Lee said that, while he didn’t know what Australia’s arrangements were, he expected it similarly made “mutually acceptable, sensible arrangements” with Swift when she performed in Melbourne and Sydney — one of which Australia’s prime minister attended — before flying to Singapore.
Swift’s representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Other questions at the news conference covered increasing tensions in the South China Sea, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the likelihood of China joining in a regional free trade pact.
U.K. government
says Kate to appear for a ceremony
LONDON | Britain’s government said Tuesday that Kate, the Princess of Wales, will attend a Trooping the Color ceremony in June. It’s the first appearance announced for the royal since she underwent abdominal surgery.
But the announcement by the U.K. Ministry of Defense caused confusion, because Prince William and Kate’s office, Kensington Palace, hasn’t confirmed any scheduled public events for Kate. It’s typically palace officials, not government departments, who announce and confirm the royals’ attendance at events.
Kate has been out of the public eye since January, when palace officials announced that she was admitted to a private London hospital for planned surgery. They didn’t provide more details, but said that she wouldn’t return to public duties until after Easter.
The Ministry of Defense said on its website that Kate, 42, who holds the title of Colonel of the Irish Guards, will inspect soldiers on parade during the June 8 ceremony.
The ceremony’s events, annual highlights in the royal calendar, are birthday parades to honor the reigning monarch and usually draw huge crowds. The tradition dates back more than 260 years. The spectacle is held at central London’s Horse Guards and along The Mall, the promenade outside Buckingham Palace.
The royal family has been under media scrutiny in recent weeks, because both Kate and King Charles III can’t carry out their usual public duties because of health problems.
Royal officials say that Charles is undergoing treatment for an unspecified form of cancer, which was discovered during treatment for an enlarged prostate. The monarch has canceled all his public engagements while he receives treatment.
Kate was discharged from hospitalization on Jan. 29 after two weeks for her undisclosed condition. Palace officials have said she wished her personal medical information to remain private.
Speculation about her health mounted last week when William at the last minute pulled out from a memorial service for his godfather, the late King Constantine of Greece, because of what officials called a “personal matter.”
Palace officials didn’t elaborate, but reiterated that Kate continues to do well in her recovery.
Caitlin Clark’s record-setting
game draws top TV rating since 1999
Caitlin Clark’s record-setting game for Iowa against Ohio State on Sunday attracted more than 4 million television viewers at its peak and was the most watched women’s regular-season basketball game since 1999, FOX Sports announced Tuesday.
Clark scored 35 points and passed Pete Maravich as the NCAA Division I overall career scoring leader during the Hawkeyes’ 93-83 win.
Average viewership was 3.39 million and reached a high of 4.42 million late in the second half. Clark set the record with two free throws just before halftime. No women’s regular-season game on any network had more viewers since 3.88 million tuned in for UConn-Tennessee in January 1999, according to Sports Media Watch.
The game was the second-most watched college basketball game of the season, trailing only the 5.18 million who saw the Michigan State-Arizona men’s game that followed an NFL Thanksgiving game on Fox, SMW said.
Ohio State-Iowa surpassed the 3.01 million who watched the Boston Celtics’ 140-88 rout of the Golden State Warriors on ABC on Sunday.
—From AP reports
