Cinematographer Halina Hutchins was killed while filming Rust in New Mexico
Prosecutors have charged the Rust gunman with tampering with evidence in connection with the fatal shooting of cameraman Halyna Hutchins.
Hannah Gutierrez-Reid has now been charged with manslaughter.
She will face an additional charge of “transferring drugs to another person,” prosecutors said.
Ms. Gutierrez-Reid will plead not guilty to the new charge, her lawyer said, calling it “retaliation and revenge.”
In court documents, prosecutors alleged that Ms. Gutierrez-Reed transferred drugs to another person on Oct. 21, 2021, the day Ms. Hutchins was killed, to “prevent the apprehension, prosecution or conviction of herself myself”. This was reported by the Reuters agency.
Last week, in separate court documents, prosecutors argued that Ms. Gutierrez-Reid was likely hungover on the day of the shooting because she drank alcohol and smoked marijuana in the evenings while the movie was being shot.
Ms Gutierrez-Reid’s lawyer said prosecutors had mishandled the case and resorted to “character assassination”. Her lawyers have filed a motion to dismiss the manslaughter charge against her.
It comes as the lead investigator in the Santa Fe District Attorney’s office, who is set to step down next month, criticized the sheriff’s office for the way they investigated the shooting and the conclusions they reached in their October report 2022
“The conduct of the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office during and after their initial investigation was reprehensible and unprofessional,” Robert Schilling wrote in an email to colleagues on Tuesday.
“Not I or 200 more experienced investigators than I can/could clean up the mess delivered to your office in October 2022.”
The criticism was posted by Ms. Gutierrez-Reid’s lawyer, who happened to be sent it by prosecutors. The BBC has contacted the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office for comment. Mr Schilling told Reuters he declined to comment.
The latest filing comes two months after prosecutors dropped charges against actor Alec Baldwin, just two weeks before his trial was set to begin.
He was charged with two counts of manslaughter after Ms. Hutchins was killed by a live bullet fired from a prop gun he used while filming Rust in New Mexico.
New Mexico Special Prosecutor Carrie Morrissey said “new facts have come to light” that warrant further investigation.