Baldwin, in this interview, also described cocking the gun as he discussed the scene with Hutchins. “So I said to him, ‘Now in this scene, I’m going to the gun. And I said, ‘Do you want to see this?’ And she said, ‘Yes.’ So I take the gun and start cocking the gun. I’m not going to pull the trigger.
Cocking a revolver gun like the one used on the film set involves pulling the hammer back to prepare the gun to fire. When the pistol’s hammer is released forward with sufficient force—as occurs when the trigger is pulled—it strikes the primer of an ammunition cartridge, causing the pistol to fire.
The FBI forensic report was turned over to the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office as part of the ongoing investigation into the fatal on-set shooting.
The report found that the gun, a .45 Colt (.45 Long Colt) caliber F.lli Pietta single-action revolver, “could not be fired without pulling the trigger” with the hammer cocked at ¼ and ½ posts. He also found that when the weapon was fully cocked, it “could not be brought to fire without pulling the trigger as long as the working internals were intact and functional”.
FBI examiners observed internal malfunction of the weapon during testing in the fully cocked position, with the report noting that “portions of the sear and cylinder stop fractured while the hammer was struck.”
The FBI report noted the limitations of forensic testing, stating “it may not be possible to recreate or duplicate all of the circumstances that led to the discharge of a firearm without pressing the trigger”.
CNN has reached out to a representative for Baldwin for comment.
An attorney representing Hannah Gutierrez Reed, who served as a gunsmith and props assistant on the film, said the forensic report said “Baldwin must have pulled the trigger to fire the gun” and that the youngster 24-year-old man was used as a “scapegoat.”
