Weapons & Guns

There's some key differences to look for when checking a gun for live ammunition or dummy rounds ... and it sounds like it should be pretty hard to screw up ... at least in theory.

Steve Wolf, who has been working in SFX and props in films for several decades, joined us on "TMZ Live" Wednesday and literally showed us what the armorer on the "Rust" set should have been looking for.

As Steve explains, it's pretty simple to spot the difference with the naked eye ... dummy rounds have a dimpled primer on the bottom, something live ammunition does not.

Steve says there's another way to check what is going into a gun ... shaking and listening for sounds.

He says the dummy rounds are loaded with BBs and the live rounds are filled with gunpowder ... and the dummy rounds make a distinct noise when shaken and the live ammo is basically silent.

The distinctions are important ... there was a fatal shooting on the "Rust" set ... and now lawyers for the armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, are suggesting someone placed a live round in a box of dummy rounds ... and that live round bullet killed Halyna Hutchins.

Hannah's lawyers said she spun the revolver before the fatal shooting ... but it sounds like Steve is saying she should have noticed the live round, based on how the bullet looks from the bottom.

The armorer also claims she didn't know there were live rounds on the set ... despite what we first told you ... the gun from the shooting was allegedly used for off-set target practice with live rounds.

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed -- the armorer for "Rust" -- is making the bombshell suggestion that perhaps somebody intentionally put a live round in a box of dummy ammunition.

Gutierrez-Reed's attorneys Jason Bowles and Robert Gorence appeared Wednesday on "Today" to outline their "sabotage" theory, and went so far as to consider potential would-be culprits.

They revealed the person who could have slipped in the live bullet would have had access and opportunity to do so between 11 AM and 1 PM ... when the ammunition was left unattended outside on a tray.

They also say Hannah wasn't even in the church during the incident because it wasn't a filming session, nor a rehearsal, but an opportunity to figure out camera angles.

What they did admit, though, was that the gun's chamber was indeed inspected and spun by their client -- and they say she put in 6 rounds (thinking they were all dummies) ... and did not realize a live round had been placed in the mix. After that, she pawned it off to assistant director David Halls ... who then went into the church with Alec Baldwin and the rest of the crew.

This is way more info than what she initially offered last week -- when she delivered relatively brief remarks that expressed condolences for Hutchins' family ... but insisted she did not know how live rounds of ammo made their way onto the set.

Gutierrez-Reed also insisted she and the head prop master gained control of all the guns on set each day, while saying she never saw anyone use the guns or put live rounds in them either. She says she never would've allowed that, as safety is her top priority on the job.

What's interesting about that claim is live rounds and dummy rounds do look the same from the front. In fact, the purpose of a dummy round is to be shown on camera when a scene calls for showing someone holding a bullet or to show a bullet in the chamber of a gun.

Gutierrez-Reed has also pointed out she was tapped for 2 positions on "Rust" -- which she says made it difficult to focus on her armorer duties ... something her attorneys say she fought back against, but was overruled by production.

Her attorneys made no bones about where the blame lies -- arguing it is NOT with Hannah. They say, "The whole production set became unsafe due to various factors, including lack of safety meetings. This was not the fault of Hannah."

Of course, there are a lot of eyeballs in her direction -- especially seeing how many believe she should've been the one to personally hand Alec the gun, and to also properly check it.

There's also the fact that she'd recently appeared to express some doubt about her abilities when it comes to the gig itself ... acknowledging she was pretty green to being a head armorer.

Rick Leventhal is digging his heels in over his decision to dress as Alec Baldwin in a cowboy costume with a gun for Halloween ... taking some serious jabs at the guy.

RL did NOT back down from his outfit choice for the holiday -- despite getting major heat, as many called it outright offensive and totally inappropriate considering the seriousness of the matter.

ICYMI ... Leventhal posted photos of him and his wife, Kelly, in costume -- pointing out she was celebrating her Native American heritage, while he was "celebrating the great American film actor Alec Baldwin." RL is pictured in rancher-like clothes ... with a fake gun in hand.

In response to all the outrage, Rick had this to say ... "In no way was I trying to offend anyone, except Alec Baldwin. He’s a jerk and deserves all the heat he’s getting."

He went on to explain he chose this getup at the last minute, while also arguing that if we dissected every costume in terms of who it might offend -- there'd be no Halloween. Rick says he of course feels bad for Halyna Hutchins' family, but adds ... "If Baldwin is anti-gun why is he waving them around in movies and pointing them at people and pulling the trigger? Focus your anger at him and the hypocrisy of that industry."

His wife's choice of costume is also getting backlash -- but chalked all that up to people being too sensitive, and not realizing she actually has Native American blood in her.

Ravens linebacker Malik Harrison caught a stray bullet in the calf while at a gathering in Cleveland during the teams bye week, Baltimore announced on Monday, saying fortunately the injuries are not life-threatening.

Harrison, 23, was a third-round draft pick of the Ravens in 2020. Malik has played in all 7 of the Ravens games this seasons, racking up 44 combined tackles.

"On Sunday night while attending a gathering in Cleveland, Malik Harrison sustained a non-life-threatening injury after being struck by a stray bullet in the left calf," the Ravens said in a statement.

"Malik, who received medical care at a local hospital, has been in touch with our team doctors and will return to Baltimore today."

It's unclear what kind of event 6'3", 247 lb. Harrison attended ... or who was the intended target of the shooting.

Harrison -- who was First Team All-Big Ten at Ohio State in 2019 -- has played in 23 games throughout his 2-year professional career ... compiling 66 total tackles.

The first place Ravens are set to take on the Vikings in Baltimore this Sunday. It's unclear how much time Harrison will miss.

Halyna Hutchins' words to the "Rust" crew after being shot prove she had a wicked sense of humor -- albeit a dark one -- and maintained it right up to her tragic end.

The slain cinematographer uttered something in response to a boom operator after being struck by the bullet Alec Baldwin had just unknowingly fired. She said, "That was no good. That was no good at all," this according to the L.A. Times.

She was reportedly replying to the boom op, who'd said the exact same thing after seeing her injury, as someone else shouted for a medic to rush to her aid. Hutchins is said to have stumbled back and fallen into the arms of a gaffer, and director Joel Souza.

Souza, who was also injured, said something along the lines of, "What the f*** was that? That burns!" Alec, similarly, repeatedly said ... "What the f*** just happened?"

As we've reported, Alec and co. were rehearsing for a shoot-out scene inside a church. Alec, the lead, was using a .45 Colt revolver. Baldwin reportedly said, "So, I guess I'm gonna take this out, pull it out and go, 'Bang!'" -- at which point, he actually carried out the gesture and fired.

The gun -- which assistant director Dave Halls had just declared was "cold" before handing it to Alec -- was supposed to be loaded with nothing but dummy rounds ... but at least one real bullet was inside.

Santa Fe authorities are still investigating the circumstances of the fatal shooting, and have not ruled out criminal charges against anyone.

Production shut down, and it appears this movie may never see the light of day ... according to Baldwin anyway, who has since gone to Vermont with his family in an attempt to lay low.

He told paparazzi he was cooperating with the Sheriff's Office, and that he couldn't disclose too many details from the case. What he did say, however, was that Hutchins was his friend -- and that he and her family are devastated.

A Japanese man dressed as the Joker went on a rampage with a knife while onboard a train in Tokyo -- and video of the passengers attempting to flee is absolutely terrifying.

Check out this wild footage from inside a subway car Sunday that was heading to the Shinjuku station ... where folks were running for their lives after a guy who's said to be just 24 years old started randomly stabbing people -- all while donning a Joker costume.

You can see passengers from one train car hopping to another in sheer panic, and then huddle up together on the opposite end ... obviously scared to death. It looks like a movie ... but it's as real as it gets.

Witnesses told police and local media that the man was brandishing a long knife smeared in what looked like blood -- something bystanders thought was a Halloween joke -- and then he started swinging it, successfully stabbing upwards of 10 people ... per reports.

He then began dousing the interior with a liquid of some sort ... and tried setting the train ablaze. That's why you're seeing all the smoke start to build up -- and why people were literally jumping out of windows to escape. All in all, cops say at least 17 people were hurt, to varying degrees.

The perp appears to have sat down after all the chaos ... and lit a cigarette with his legs crossed, seemingly taking in everything he'd just done. It's as eerie as it sounds. People from the outside filmed him through the door windows ... all he does he stare back and smoke.

It wasn't long before the cops showed up and arrested him on suspicion of attempted murder, among other charges. He didn't put up much of a fight either -- looks like the man cooperated with police and allowed himself to be taken into custody.

Cops say they don't have any clear motive just yet -- but we're sure this dude will get the grilling of his life to figure out why he did this.

Shots rang out in Hollywood Saturday night outside a Halloween bash hosted by Teyana Taylor.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... as folks were having a great time at the Sunset Room, when 3 armed men approached 3 women standing on the curb outside the club and tried robbing them.  They pistol-whipped one woman and as the men tried robbing them a security guard jumped into action in an attempt to thwart the robbery.

The guard exchanged gunfire with one of the armed suspects but both missed. The bullets were lodged in several parked cars.

The 3 men fled in a car. It's unclear if they ended up stealing anything from the women.

An ambulance arrived but the woman who was pistol-whipped refused medical attention.

The head armorer for "Rust" is pointing fingers, claiming the real culprit is the person who introduced live rounds on the set ... she says unbeknownst to her.

The lawyers for Hannah Gutierrez-Reed say in a statement, Hannah "is devastated and completely beside herself over the events that have transpired."

The attorneys go on to say, "Safety is Hannah's number one priority on the set. Ultimately this set would never have been compromised if live ammo were not introduced. Hannah has no idea where the live rounds came from."

Her lawyers went on to echo what she told authorities ... that the guns were locked up at night and during lunch.

And, the lawyers cast blame on producers for overloading her with work, saying, "Hannah was hired on two positions on this film, which made it extremely difficult to focus on her job as an armorer." This is an interesting statement because it almost assumes she didn't do her job properly because she had too much else to do. We are told her other job on set was as the key assistant for props.

The lawyers say, "She fought for training, days to maintain weapons and proper time to prepare for gunfire but ultimately was overruled by production and her department. The whole production set became unsafe due to various factors, including lack of safety meetings."

The statement seems to acknowledge there were at least 2 misfires of the weapon in the days prior to the fatal shooting ... "The first one on this set was the prop master and the second was a stunt man after Hannah informed him his gun was hot with blanks."

Authorities have already said there were lapses on the set, but they have not played their hand on whether criminal charges will be filed. What is clear ... a real gun should not have been used, there should not have been live ammo on the set and the crew should have cleared everyone in the line of fire to move away during the rehearsal.

Master P has worked on a lot of movie and music video sets using guns and without accidents ... and he credits growing up in the hood as a reason they've been so safe.

We got MP at LAX Thursday and asked about the tragic death of Halyna Hutchins on the set of "Rust." He says he's actually crossed paths with Hutchins before ... she worked as a cinematographer on his movie "I Got The Hook-Up 2."

P joined the chorus of people saying the gun should have been thoroughly checked before it was handed over to Alec Baldwin ... something that was not done. He also blames producers and Baldwin, saying pretty much everyone was responsible, and producers can't escape blame by claiming they were in the dark.

Alec Baldwin is surrounding himself with family in an off-the-beaten-path location in the wake of the fatal accident on his "Rust" movie set -- but his face shows the tragedy's still weighing on him.

We obtained these photos of Alec with his wife, Hilaria, and their kids grabbing a meal at a pizza joint in a small New England town. Witnesses tell us they were spotted out there on Sunday picking up a takeout order ... which Alec was carrying as his family followed close behind.

You can see, both Alec and Hilaria had their heads down and looked as somber as you'd expect considering the horrific events of last week.

As you know, Alec pulled the trigger on a revolver while rehearsing a "Rust" scene in Santa Fe, NM -- and the shot ended up killing his director of photography, Halyna Hutchins, and injuring director Joel Souza.

By all accounts, Alec didn't know the gun in his hand was loaded with live ammunition. Assistant director Dave Halls handed it to him and said it was a "cold gun." Halls later admitted to cops he had not properly checked the weapon.

Last Saturday, Alec met with Halyna's husband and son in New Mexico, not far from the movie set. It looks like Alec was wearing the same outfit the next day when he was in New England with his family ... and clearly had so much on his mind.

Alec Baldwin is seemingly declaring his innocence in the accident that killed Halyna Hutchins by pointing out he was told it was a "cold" gun ... when it was actually loaded with a live round.

Baldwin retweeted an article Wednesday night about the most recent search warrant filed in the death investigation. The NYT story -- headlined, "Gun Handed to Alec Baldwin Was Not Thoroughly Checked" -- focused on the documents TMZ first told you about, which highlight several safety failures.

In the affidavit filed Wednesday, Assistant Director Dave Halls admitted to cops he had not thoroughly checked the weapon for live rounds before handing it to Baldwin.

While Alec hasn't said anything publicly since his first tweet the day after Hutchins was killed, his actions on social media speak volumes, retweeting multiple articles saying he was told the weapon was safe.

Head armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, told authorities prior to the scene, and during the movie's lunch break, the gun was locked in a safe and very few people had access to it.

The question that remains ... how did live ammo not only get on set, but into the gun's chamber? We spoke with several people from the set who told us outside of filming, the gun was sometimes used for recreational use and target practice.

Both the Santa Fe Co. Sheriff's Office and District Attorney held a press conference Wednesday where they said charges are technically still on the table for everyone involved.

The family of the 6-year-old boy in Michigan who was shot outside their neighbors' home while retrieving his bicycle has lawyered up ... and they're dragging the neighbors to court.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Coby Daniel's father says his son is struggling to recover from the shooting, and the fam is anticipating some hefty medical bills in the future.

In his suit, Arnold Daniel claims his son is still in pain and shock from the incident, and will need to get professional help in the form of trauma counseling ... as well as psychiatric and psychological counseling.

Coby's dad says the neighbors, Ryan Le-Nguyen and Michael Inhmathong, should be liable for the damage because they knew children in the neighborhood played near their yard and had a duty to keep it safe for them ... and further claims Le-Nguyen had shown "aggressive behavior" toward the kids numerous times in the past.

As we reported ... Le-Nguyen allegedly shot young Coby in the arm after chasing him around with a sledgehammer. The neighbor was reportedly pissed Coby and a buddy left their bicycles on the sidewalk in front of his home.

Coby's dad is going after the neighbors for at least $4 million in damages.

It's time to drop the curtain on the Alec Baldwin movie "Rust" after the fatal shooting on set ... at least according to one of the principal actors.

Ian A. Hudson, a New Mexico-based principal cast member who plays an outlaw in the film, tells TMZ ... the show can't go on because slain cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was the vision behind the movie.

While Ian says it's ultimately up to director Joel Souza and the rest of the creative minds, he thinks the movie just wouldn't be the same without Halyna and Joel working in tandem ... and it's time to throw in the towel.

Remember ... Ian was smack in the center of some of the gun scenes in the movie, and he told us his shootout scene felt "life-threatening" because real firearms were firing blanks at him, resulting in him being struck by small bits of cardboard and a rush of air.

As you know ... Alec pulled the trigger on a gun that fired the fatal live round of ammo that killed Halyna and injured Joel.

Assistant director Dave Halls gave Alec the gun used in the scene, telling him it was a "cold gun" ... meaning it was not loaded.

There's an ongoing investigation into the incident and authorities say criminal charges are still on the table for all involved ... which could make it even harder for the movie to continue.

We covered it all on the latest episode of The TMZ Podcast.

The head armorer on the set of "Rust" told authorities she took all the necessary steps to secure the gun that killed the cinematographer ... but the assistant director confessed the gun was not thoroughly checked before Alec Baldwin fired the fatal round.

According to a new search warrant, obtained by TMZ, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed told authorities the day of the shooting she had checked the ammo -- which she called the "dummies," meaning they were not live rounds. She added there were never live rounds on the set.

She went on to say the gun was locked up in a safe in a prop truck during the lunch break and taken out shortly before the fatal scene. The implication -- she's saying the gun appeared safe to her, because it wasn't messed with it during lunch. She did, however, say there were a few people who had access to the safe.

Assistant director David Halls -- the person who handed the weapon to Baldwin and called it a "cold gun" -- confessed when she showed him the firearm before rehearsal he could only remember seeing 3 rounds. He admitted he should have checked all of the rounds, and doesn't remember if Hannah spun the drum before she handed him the gun, and he, in turn, handed it to Baldwin.

After cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and director Joel Souza were shot, Halls says he inspected the chamber and he remembers seeing at least 4 dummy casings with the signature hole on the side, and one without the hole. He said the one without the hole didn't have a cap ... the implication is it was the remains of a live round of ammunition.

This all points to a lapse of safety precautions on the set, and that's something the District Attorney is now looking at in determining if criminal charges should be filed. The D.A. said charges are on the table for everyone involved. Authorities want to speak with Baldwin again and they want to review the employment history of both Halls and Gutierrez-Reed before making a filing decision.

The armorer on "Rust" got an earful from one Nicolas Cage when she was working on his movie earlier this year -- and it doesn't sound like he was confident in her abilities either.

The veteran actor reportedly got pissed and yelled at Hannah Gutierrez-Reed over the summer while shooting his newest flick, "The Old Way," down in Montana -- this after she apparently fired off weapons around the crew without warning, not once but TWICE.

According to The Wrap, the 24-year-old rookie was allegedly complained about a lot ... not just by Cage, but by other seasoned people who noticed -- she was out of her element.

As for the supposed NC blowup ... Sharon Waxman reports after the second time in 3 days of Gutierrez-Reed testing a weapon near everyone else unexpectedly, Cage yelled -- "Make an announcement, you just blew my f***ing eardrums out!" Then, he stormed off.

A key grip on 'TOW' claims Cage wasn't the only one who was frustrated -- he apparently told the assistant director the young armorer had to go, as he felt she was slipping up.

Now, for the record, a producer for "The Old Way" denies any such account ... while saying the accounts about Gutierrez-Reed on that set are being blown out of proportion. They went on to say she was working under a head prop master, and felt she was just fine.

The gaffer from the set of 'Rust' who torched producers and the novice armorer over Halyna Hutchins' death is back in Los Angeles. ... and he's got some support waiting for him.

Serge Svetnoy touched down in L.A. Tuesday just a couple days after his scathing Facebook post squarely blaming Hannah Reed and others working behind the scenes for allowing this tragedy to unfold on set.

As you can see, Serge was greeted by a friend ... who was ready to welcome him with open arms. The 2 embraced in a hug, although the guy still looked pretty somber, and understandably so.

He also appears to be one of the first crew members back on the West Coast after last week's shooting incident in New Mexico. It could be a sign of where cops are in the investigation too -- presumably, the authorities are starting to cut people loose.

Like we told you ... Serge wasn't shy about sharing his criticism of what went wrong and whose actions he thinks cost Halyna her life. He explicitly mentioned the 24-year-old weapons expert ... while also throwing around words like "negligence" and "unprofessionalism."

In addition to his comments, he also posted what's believed to be one of the last photographs of her ... shortly before she died.

She and the rest of the crew were rehearsing a scene in a church, where Alec Baldwin was in full costume ... and where he ultimately did a cross-draw motion and fired the gun, not knowing it had a live round of ammo in one of the chambers. Serge says he was holding Halyna, and was covered in her blood before she was airlifted.

So far, there've been no criminal charges brought forth -- but the investigation is still underway, and this is far from over.