Accident on the set of Rust.

[Pumpkinhead]

3) All political opinions of AB aside please, but it appears that AB is devastated by what happened. Certainly will suffer mentally for quite some time. What "good" does it do to incarcerate him in the prison system? I know there is state law that would govern and direct this, but does incarcerating him do anything to help the situation? Yes... serve as an example, pay the price the law demands, exact a pound of flesh, etc...

...but there was no malice involved, he is NEVER going to touch a firearm again, he could become a crusader for gun safety and use his talent and Hollywood connections to help raise additional monies/foundations/scholarships in the victim(s) names, set up a college fund for her children, etc.

Isn't there a better way to honor her memory and pay his debt to society than to rot in a jail cell and think about what he's done?

BS! The only thing he's devastated about is how this will affect his ability to create/keep more wealth. What he could become??? A crusader for gun safety???? What fairy land do you live in? How do you know he'll never touch a firearm again? Raise money for others.... come on now! No, he killed someone, prison at least.

 

[Pumpkinhead]

Let us not forget, many celebrities don’t actually handle their own social media accounts.

Too bad, so sad. I would not let anyone speak for me. It's a stupid thing to not handle your own account. Better to not have an account at all.

 

[blewis17]

Yes, it makes practical sense legally not to admit guilt publicly. But I was responding to a guy who suggests absolving Baldwin on the basis of his probable internal remorse on the possibility that he would inevitably turn this into a positive. That's like, "I'm sorry as long as I don't have to be punished or lose my career
A normal person would and should just clam up. Baldwin is actively trying to throw others under the bus to save his neck. Don't they have families and relations, too?

Let me be clear: I am not absolving AB of responsibility here. I was just asking the hypothetical/possible outcome RE: if this goes all the way to AB being found guilty in a court of law, what purpose is served to have him sit behind bars? There are certain ethical, moral, and legal reasons this is done of course. But perhaps the better question: Is jail time in and of itself ENOUGH to say that he "paid the price" for his transgression? Paid his debt to society?

Again, I'm not absolving AB of any responsibility. But should he be considered 100% culpable? Some here have said "Yes". This is just such an odd, unusual, and thankfully rare event to happen in the entertainment industry that I am curious about what could potentially happen here. I fully understand that with proper oversight, this is 100% preventable. The only precedents that come to mind are Brandon Lee's and Vic Morrow's tragic deaths on set. Of course I understand that remorseful drunk drivers still have to pay the price. I have taken care of the drunk driver who killed the innocent driver/passengers in the other vehicle. I have also taken care of the non-intoxicated elderly grandmother that ran the stop sign, crashed into another car and killed its occupant, while she herself survived.

There is no question in my mind that AB has dealt with enough legal matters in his life, he knows better than to say anything that would admit guilt. And if he can slowly insinuate that he was the innocent at the end of the chain of others' mistakes... self-preservation will certainly kick in.

 

[blewis17]

BS! The only thing he's devastated about is how this will affect his ability to create/keep more wealth. What he could become??? A crusader for gun safety???? What fairy land do you live in? How do you know he'll never touch a firearm again? Raise money for others.... come on now! No, he killed someone, prison at least.

If he is completely insincere and is only acting to save his own hide, then I agree with you.

But what I was trying to get across was, given the very specific set of circumstances and rarity of this tragic event, what "good" would be done with AB sitting behind bars? I am honestly asking The RPF's opinion. Would it be something along the lines of...
#1 It makes us as society feel better that AB is being punished by losing a part of his life, because he inadvertently took the life of another?
#2 Is it a purely legal argument, an eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, etc... that this degree of an accident that resulted in death ultimately at AB hands, requires imprisonment?
#3 Does it make us/the public, feel safer that a dangerous man AB has been taken off the streets?
#4 Are we as citizens saying that, in order to not sully the memory of all the innocents that have have been killed as the result of tragic accidents, AB has to be imprisoned otherwise their memories, their tragedies are tarnished?
#5 Does prison time for AB serve as a warning and deterrent for future film-makers using real firearms on set? Does it improve the safe handling of dangerous weapons?

(I am assuming he would not face the death penalty here, which is why I did not bring it up as an option)

 

[dascoyne]

Let me be clear: I am not absolving AB of responsibility here. I was just asking the hypothetical/possible outcome RE: if this goes all the way to AB being found guilty in a court of law, what purpose is served to have him sit behind bars? There are certain ethical, moral, and legal reasons this is done of course. But perhaps the better question: Is jail time in and of itself ENOUGH to say that he "paid the price" for his transgression? Paid his debt to society?

Again, I'm not absolving AB of any responsibility. But should he be considered 100% culpable? Some here have said "Yes". This is just such an odd, unusual, and thankfully rare event to happen in the entertainment industry that I am curious about what could potentially happen here. I fully understand that with proper oversight, this is 100% preventable. The only precedents that come to mind are Brandon Lee's and Vic Morrow's tragic deaths on set. Of course I understand that remorseful drunk drivers still have to pay the price. I have taken care of the drunk driver who killed the innocent driver/passengers in the other vehicle. I have also taken care of the non-intoxicated elderly grandmother that ran the stop sign, crashed into another car and killed its occupant, while she herself survived.

There is no question in my mind that AB has dealt with enough legal matters in his life, he knows better than to say anything that would admit guilt. And if he can slowly insinuate that he was the innocent at the end of the chain of others' mistakes... self-preservation will certainly kick in.

What purpose would it serve for any drunk driver to be behind bars for that matter? If that driver had a wife and kids and was their only source of income I would say you could make a stronger case for this man to stay out of prison than for Baldwin.

I don't understand the point you were making about you managing the drunk/negligent drivers. No offense, but I don't see how that gives anyone additional insight into redemption. I, too, am a physician and have managed patients like that. I am also a clinical instructor of internal medicine for the Stanford University residency program. Before that I taught at Brown University. But that isn't going to make my opinion any more enlightened than the strength of my argument.

 

[scarf man]

Putative measures for wrongdoing serves justice, plain and simple.

 

[dascoyne]

 

[Rogue]

But my scenario doesn't preclude any of those conspiracies, either.

I suspect there might have also been a second shooter behind some grassy knoll. If so, nobody is talking.

There was a second shooter, but he was stopped when his future self returned as a child to push him through a time-travel portal.

It's scientific fact, I saw a documentary about it. There were lots of umbrellas involved for some reason?

 

[Rogue]

It would seem no. The protocol does involve the AD. Here is Kevin Smith describing the on set protocol. Say what you will about Smith, but he is a filmmaker with years of experience on set, though he admits not a huge amount with firearms.

EDIT - looks like embedding the video is disabled. You'll have to click to watch it on YouTube.

If it helps, the relevant bit starts at 59 minutes...

 

[userd1402]

Why do so many of these so-called 'social commentators' post videos from their cars? Does no one have a home/office any more?

 

[JPH]

Wow! So guilty as Hell by the facts, now the emotional appeal with a touch of moral ju-juitsu

Insisting you should let Baldwin go because it shows how awesome you are if you do.

But Baldwin killed someone and deserves a consequence.

Next, insist you are a terrible person for not wanting Baldwin set free.

Because, y'know, letting people get away with killing is so morally superior.

 

[dascoyne]

Why do so many of these so-called 'social commentators' post videos from their cars? Does no one have a home/office any more?

This attorney says he needs to do this in his car sometimes to escape from a noisy family. I can relate.

 

[batguy]

Why do so many of these so-called 'social commentators' post videos from their cars? Does no one have a home/office any more?

I dunno. You'd think Shia LeBeoff would be able to afford a nice little den room at home.

 

[Bigdaddy]

Seems like the doctors are now lawyers in this thread. I'm sure a judge that has the facts will make a more informed decision on this matter than a group of people reading articles on the internet will. It seems like there was considerable negligence on the set but none of us are qualified or informed enough to determine if it rises to criminal negligence.
Whether or not AB faces charges or jail I'd bet this is the end of his mainstream acting career. His production company, and likely himself personally will have financially devastating law suits for wrongful death.

 

[gregory]

Let us not forget, many celebrities don’t actually handle their own social media accounts. Some statements could be coming from publicists or assistants. Often they spring into damage control and post stuff without thinking of the long term ramifications. Again, just thinking out loud. Like every other speculation about the whole event in this thread, we can never know for sure about anything.

I agree in general, however at a time like this I’m sure nothing is sent without his knowing. If he is letting other people make his tweets now, then firearms are not the only thing he’s too dumb to handle.

 

[JPH]

BS! The only thing he's devastated about is how this will affect his ability to create/keep more wealth. What he could become??? A crusader for gun safety???? What fairy land do you live in? How do you know he'll never touch a firearm again? Raise money for others.... come on now! No, he killed someone, prison at least.

It looks like both sides *know* Baldwin screwed up.


But one side is hunting for any reason to allow Baldwin to avoid a well-earned consequence.

Baldwin behind bars is a far more powerful Gun Safety advertisement than Baldwin choking up as the center of attention during a gun safety Gala. Seriously, how is a negligent killer who avoids jail time, an inspiration to do the right thing?

Make it about his victims and his irresponsible actions, not all about him.

 

[JPH]

Whether or not AB faces charges or jail I'd bet this is the end of his mainstream acting career. His production company, and likely himself personally will have financially devastating law suits for wrongful death.

While you can "bet" this will be the end of Baldwin's career, that is still nothing compared to the effect on Halyna Hutchins.

 

[DarthWilder]

If AB receives a felony conviction, then he won't be allowed near real firearms again. And that would be good for his co-workers and society as a whole.

 

[DarthWilder]

Lessons unlearned? Alec Baldwin's father was riflery coach at high school

Baldwin's possible familiarity with the fundamentals of firearm safety "could be relevant" to his potential civil or criminal liability, "but it is not determinative," said legal scholar and commentator Jonathan Turley.

justthenews.com

 

[joberg]

I called my bookie and bet that AB will not go to jail and will get house arrest instead (2 years max.) and will do volunteer work.