now for the first time, we're hearing from the friends of helena hutchins who were there, describingmoment when the gun went off. here's abc's kaylee hartung. >> reporter: on bonanza creek ranch outside of santa fe, new mexico, 75 crew members, 22 principal actors, and hundreds of extras all converged on set with the singular goal of making the western movie "rust." >> the story is about this grizzled outlaw named harland rust. and that was the character played by alec baldwin. >> reporter: alec baldwin was both its star and a producer on the film. >> we're out here making a western. that's classic cinema right there. >> reporter: helena hutchins,ns, 24-year-old photographer originally from ukraine. >> it's a passion for sure. once you get the bug, you can't get out of it. >> "rust" was a big break. it was an opportunity for her to just show how good she was. >> this is a $7.5 million movie. it is the catering budget on a d.c. comics movie. >> they were insisting upon having one person do two very important jobs. the armorer role, taking care of the guns and ammunition, and then they

. >> reporter: alec baldwin is speaking out about the tragic incident that took the life of helena hutchinn this the set of the film "rust," the low-budget western which he was both producing and starring in. it was the 12th day of a 21-day shoot. >> that day i did exactly what i've done every day on that movie. >> reporter: baldwin preparing for one of his biggest scenes, a shoot-out inside this wooden church. >> i'm handed the gun, someone says "this is a cold gun." >> dave halls? >> in my years hot gun meant there was a charge, cold gun meant there was nothing in there. when he's saying this is a cold gun what he's saying to everybody on the set is you can relax. the gun is empty. >> that's what cold gun means? >> cold gun means there's no charge. there could be dummy rounds. >> reporter: a dummy round looks like a real bullet but is completely inert, containing no explosive charge. baldwin, director joel souza, and cinematographer hen li na hutchins rehearsing the scene. >> i'm holding the gun where she told me to told it, which was aimed below her armpit is what i was told, i don't kn

baldwin has said he did not pull the trigger of the gun that killed helena hutchins. the letter says, in part, quote the descriptions of rust as a chaotic, dangerous and exploitative workplace are false and distract from what matters the most. the memory of helena hutchins and the need to find modern alternatives to outdated industry, firearm and safety practices. some good news tonight for dungeness crab lovers. the state department of fish and wildlife announced today that beginning next thursday, commercial fishing will be allowed on the coast. between pigeon point and lopez point in big sur. this comes as commercial fishing remains closed around san francisco to protect dozens of humpback whales recently spotted in the area. commercial crab fishing began december 1st north of the sonoma mendocino county line. felt right. enjoy the next couple of dry days because things are going to change rapidly as we get in towards sunday, well saturday night into sunday, monday and tuesday. you heard all about it already. i'm sure the atmospheric river shows up urban areas coul

cinematographer helena hutchins was killed and another person hurt. baldwin has no idea how that live round got on set. >> a piece of live ammunition ended up on this property. it wasn't supposed to be on the property. it wasn't supposed to be on the truck. wasn't supposed to be in the kit. wasn't supposed to be in somebody's fanny pack. a live round is not supposed to be anywhere near the set. >> how did that bullet -- >> that's what i'm saying. that's for a criminal investigation to solve. i have no idea. >> the investigation into that shooting is still under way. >>> a follow up. pg&e has agreed to a settlement with the state puc. this is tied to the kinkade fire that destroyed nearly 600 structures in sonoma county. as our investigative unit learned, the commission found multiple violations in the fire zone. it prevents pg&e from seeking compensation for removing abandoned power equipment. the utility has not commented. >>> now to our climate in crisis. tourism here in california is taking a big hit due to the climate change. nbc's steve patterson

baldwin was asked about that moment cinematographer helena hutchins was shot and killed rehearsing a pulled. >> the trigger wasn't pulled, i didn't pull the trigger. >> you never pulled the trigger? >> no, no, i would never point a gun at someone and pull the trigger, never. >> he had he had no reason to suspect the gun contained a live bullet. "alec baldwin unscripted" here on abc news, then streaming on hulu. that's "nightline" for this evening. catch our full episodes on hulu. see you right back here same time tomorrow. thanks for the company, america. good night.

. >> alec baldwin breaking his silence on the "rust" movie shooting that killed helena hutchins the actor spoke in an interview with abc news anchor george stephanopoulis >> the gun was in your hand. how do you come to terms with that it wasn't in the script for the trigger to be pulled, i never pulled the trigger. >> so you never pulled the trigger? >> no, i would never point a gun at anyone and pull the trigger >> how did it happen in. >> someone put a live bull net a gun, a bullet that wasn't even supposed to be on the rots. >> reporter: is san jose sheriffs office issued a search warrant that live ammunition meant for another movie production was accidentally mixed in with planks on set. no wasn't has been charged, there are two lawsuits for unsafe working conditions. baldwin has disputed the allegations on social med why. >>> explosive testimony in the sex trafficking trial of ghislaine maxwell involving former president donald trump. a woman alleges shelves sexually abused by ghislaine and jeffrey ep stone and testified he took her to meet donald trump at his mar-a-lago resort when

click, call or visit a store today. >>> the set of the film rust that killed helena hutchins.old. i don't know. we kept on doing this. i am going to cock the gun. do you want to see that? i take the gun and i start to -- i am not going to pull the trigger. i cock the gun, can you see that? can you see that? and i let go the hammer of the gun and the gun goes offer. i let go of the handle of the gun and it goes off. >> at the moment. >> it was not in the script for the trigger to be pulled. >> well, the trigger was not pulled. i didn't pull the trigger. >> no, i would never point the gun at anyone and pull the trigger. that was the training i had. i got countless of people online, you idiot, you are never to pull the gun on anyone. well, unless you are instructed from the cinematographer who tells you to do and she and i thought it was empty. that was not hers and my responsibility. >> you are never to point a gun at anyone on a set no matter what. >> unless the person is a cinematographer who directed you to point the gun at her camera angle. that's exactly what happened. >> t

helena hutchins.oel sousa was injured closing arguments in the elizabeth holmes trial are expected to finish tomorrow. the government says holmes chose to deceive investors and patients about the blood testing capabilities that theranos the defense says it was never holmes's intent and that the prosecution is hiding details about theranos. interactions with pharmaceutical companies a legal expert says the case comes down to holmes' credibility against the evidence and testimony of 29 other witnesses. i think if the jury follows the evidence in the money, they could certainly convict her. we have documents. we have the website. we have the present powerpoint presentations that she made we have the parloff article we have what else the logos that she changed the changing of conclusions and reports. jury deliberations are set to begin at next week. exactly one year after more than a thousand barrels of gasoline spilled into a flood control canal in walnut creek. a multi-million dollar settlement has been

helena hutchins.oel sousa was injured closing arguments in the elizabeth holmes trial are expected to finish tomorrow. the government says holmes chose to deceive investors and patients about the blood testing capabilities that theranos the defense says it was never holmes's intent and that the prosecution is hiding details about theranos. interactions with pharmaceutical companies a legal expert says the case comes down to holmes' credibility against the evidence and testimony of 29 other witnesses. i think if the jury follows the evidence in the money, they could certainly convict her. we have documents. we have the website. we have the present powerpoint presentations that she made we have the parloff article we have what else the logos that she changed the changing of conclusions and reports. jury deliberations are set to begin at next week. exactly one year after more than a thousand barrels of gasoline spilled into a flood control canal in walnut creek. a multi-million dollar settlement has been

the fatal film set shooting in new mexico that killed the movie cinematographer, her name was helena hutchins claiming he never pulled the trigger. here is what he told abc news. take a look. >> the trigger -- i didn't pull the trigger. >> you never pulled the trigger? >> i would never point a gun and pull a trigger. somebody put a live bullet in the gun, something that was not even supposed to be in the property. >> is this the worst thing that's ever happened to you? >> yes. >> sean: obviously this raises more questions. if baldwin is telling the truth, then how did that gun discharge? guns don't fire themselves. authorities have released the fourth search warrant in the investigation revealing new theories about how the live ammo made it onto the set including the possibility that reloaded ammunition was provided to the production which featured the same logo as the dummy rounds normally used on set. here with reaction, fox news legal analyst, gregg jarrett, brian carpenter. let me start with you, brian. he said the trigger wasn't pulled, i didn't pull the trigger. i would never point a gu

. >> shannon: cinematographer helena hutchins -- was killed. the director was wounded. star and producer of that western titled "russ." prosecutions rested their case today arguing he staged a crime against himself back in 2019. both brothers troops he allegedly played to attack him took the witness stand as the cross-examination from his attorney foul attorney. a tense moment when walker questioned one of the brothers about whether his past text were homophobic. the judge intervened to call the line of questioning collateral. walker asked for a mistrial which the judge denied. jeffrey epstein's former housekeeper testified today in the trial against his confidant, jolene maxwell, that she was "the lady of the house" and the financiers home beach home and that she was there 95% of the time that epstein was. alleged he found tapes and found text with dominic to toys. tasked with picking up girls including one a and steen's accusers and taking her to epstein's house. also to the airport. he also said acts will give him a booklet of work instructions including to "see noth

told abc's george stephanopoulos that the gun fired on its own after he picked it up killing helena hutchinsmes as investigators now believe a homemade bullet supplied by a new mexico armor may have made its way on to the set and into baldwin's pistol for the film. no charges have yet been filed against anyone involved in this case. >> san jose. officials are saying their outrage says 2 suspects of a homicide or walking freely tonight after being released without bail 27 year-old f rain and sarah sands 26 year-old alfred castillo are suspected to be involved in a fatal shooting that killed a man on halloween night. both were arrested the next day following an investigation on serous faces charges of suspicion of homicide while casteel was booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and being an accessory to homicide. in a statement released late last night. san jose mayor sam liccardo said, quote, i appreciate the purpose of bail reform, but releasing a homicide suspect without bail is outrageous. the pendulum has swung too far and it's our neighborhoods and endure the most crime tha

the warrant is part of the investigation into the fatal shooting of cinematographer helena hutchins. on the set of baldwin's movie rust. baldwin was holding a revolver during a rehearsal when it fired. he has maintained that it was hutchins herself, who asked him to point the gun toward her armpit before it went off. he has said he didn't know the gun contained a live round. los angeles is seeing a sudden boom in tourism . the only time says hotel bookings returned to 100% of their pre pandemic levels in october and november. that's considerably above the national average and other parts of california. hotels say los angeles is a popular destination for tourists who drive to southern california from out of state and the areas many family at attractions and amusement parks are a big draw. coming up at 11 a new tiktok challenge, prompting a warning and putting many school districts across the bay area on high alert for tomorrow, up first after the break another blow to president biden's agenda. why the build back better bill is stalled in the senate. back better spendingn appears to ha

know it's not me >> reporter: alec baldwin telling abc news his version of how cinematographer helena hutchinsg the actor says he pulled back the hammer, but didn't fully cock the weapon. i said how does that work? do you see that? do you see that? she says yeah. he i let go of the trigger and bang >> reporter: explaining he never pulled the trigger >> everyone was shocked. the gun was supposed to be empty. >> i have two gunshots and i need an ambulance. >> reporter: baldwin says he's grieving for hutchins and her family >> this boy doesn't have a mother any more. and there's nothing we can do to bring her back she was someone who was loved by everyone who worked with and liked by everyone who worked with her and admired >> reporter: attorneys for the film's armorer hannah gutierrez reed recently telling savannah they believe someone deliberately sabotaged the set by mixing live ammunition into a box labeled dummy rounds >> the person who put the live round in the box of dummy rounds had to have the purpose of sabotaging this set. there is no other reason you would do that. >> reporter: it's a

why he says he bears no responsibility for helena hutchins' tragic death. >> do you feel guilt?is responsible for what happened and i cannot say who it is, but i know it is not me. ♪ ♪ earn about covid-19, the more questions we have. the biggest question now, what's next? what will covid bring in six months, a year? if you're feeling anxious about the future, you're not alone. calhope offers free covid-19 emotional support. call 833-317-4673, or live chat at calhope.org today. >> john: in an interview last night, alec baldwin did not he was to blame for the deadly shooting on the set of "rust." since the shocking incident, jeff paul is live in los angeles with more on all of this. jeff. >> ball one says that halyna hutchins ask him to point a gun just to the side as they worked on camera angles. he said come at her direction, she told him to pull the back of the hammer of the firearm. it was at that point, he let go of the hammer, never touching the trigger, and the gun fired. >> i did not pull the trigger. >> he did not pull the trigger? >> no, no, no. i would never point a gun

him in his first television interview since the accidental shooting that killed cinematographer helena hutchinsoes not feel responsible for her death. the interview comes as a criminal investigation is still underway in new mexico. our reporter nancy loo has more. >> mister baldwin says he doesn't want to portray himself as a victim and yet he portrays himself as a victim attorney. gloria allred is fired up over the alec baldwin interview last night she stands by recent claim that baldwin played russian roulette and should have checked the prop gun that killed halyna hutchins. yes, he does have responsibility and just relying on assistant directors say colgan and not checking for himself. >> that is not excusable. he was pointing. >> the gun at the mother of his own children. would he have been more cautious in his exclusive interview with abc news anchor george stephanopoulos baldwin expressed disdain for the 2 crew members who have filed suit. >> ahead of matthew hutchens. the cinematographers newly widowed husband and single father visit. >> couple different policies. there's a pool of money

discharged during the shooting actor alec baldwin accidently shot and killed cinematographer helena hutchinsution showing that video to jury on tuesday. the state says two brothers who knew smollett were paid $3,500 after the alleged dry run and given $100 in cash for supplies. smollett's lawyer says the brothers attacked the actor because they, quote, didn't like him. overnight a huge explosion rocking a new york city neighborhood. six people suffering minor injuries in 54 others placed -- displaced by the blast in the cypress hill area of brooklyn. a nearby resident says he smelled gas before the explosion and notified his landlord. wow. andre dickens, a pro-criminal justice reform candidate officially wins atlanta's mayoral election. dickens previously voted for a failed measure that would have withheld a third of the police department's budget. the 47-year-old now vowing to make atlanta a leader in public safety affordable housing and eliminating inequality. the city council member defeating the council's president in the mayoral runoff winning with 64% of the vote steve, over to you. st