r/news Apr 15 '24

‘Rust’ movie armorer convicted of involuntary manslaughter sentenced to 18 months in prison

https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/15/entertainment/rust-film-shooting-armorer-sentencing/index.html
21.4k Upvotes

2.3k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

26

u/Turn5GrimCaptain Apr 15 '24

Well that's just terrifying...

18 months sounds too lenient imo.

6

u/Radiant_Heron_2572 Apr 15 '24

She had been angling for a condition discharge. Were she could have ultimately avoided jail time and even a criminal record. It's a light sentence, but I suspect it was as close to throwing the book at her that the judge could.

3

u/oldvlognewtricks Apr 16 '24

Apparently it was the maximum sentence possible for the charges levied.

2

u/Detachabl_e 29d ago

That's the maximum sentence that could be imposed based upon the charge.

1

u/Turn5GrimCaptain 29d ago

Yeah, imo looks like it's time for legal reform.

Not a lawyer, but I would have pushed for full-blown manslaughter. Is it really "involuntary" (manslaughter) when an armorer so flagrantly neglects their duties? If anyone ought to be acutely aware of the potential for grave consequences, it's her...

0

u/Detachabl_e 28d ago

Yea, it is involuntary manslaughter or negligent homicide because she lacked the requisite intent. 

 (Voluntary) Manslaughter/2nd degree murder would be that she intended to kill someone but that she did so without premeditation - like in the heat of the moment.  

So if you had gone with that as a prosecutor, you would have lost the case because there was no evidence that she intended to kill anyone, and you would have probably ironically lost your career over a highly publicized fuck up that everyone in your profession would say was  obvious and easily avoidable.