'Rust' armorer was forced by her bosses to cut corners on gun safety, attorneys say in first statement since fatal shooting on set

• Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins died on the set of 'Rust' after being hit by a live round.
• Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, 24, oversaw gun safety on set, and gave her first response on Thursday.

The armorer on the set of "Rust" was forced by her superiors to cut corners on gun safety, her attorneys said.

They made the claim on behalf of 24-year-old Hannah Gutierrez-Reed in a statement on Thursday. It was her first public response to the death on set of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Hutchins died on October 22 after being hit by a live round fired by actor Alec Baldwin. The shot also injured director Joel Souza. Law enforcement officials are investigating the incident and no charges have been filed.

The attorneys for Gutierrez-Reed said she was overworked and denied the training she needed in the statement, which was first reported by MSNBC anchor Yasmin Vossoughian.

"Hannah was hired on two positions on this film, which made it extremely difficult to focus on her job as an armorer," Jason Bowles and Robert Gorence said.

It wasn't immediately clear what the other role was.

They continued by saying that Gutierrez-Reed "fought for training days to maintain weapons and proper time to prepare for gunfire but ultimately was overruled by production and her department."

The statement did not name those it said were responsible for overruling her.

"The whole production set became unsafe due to various factors, including lack of safety meetings," it said.

The statement said that Gutierrez-Reed was "devastated and completely beside herself" and had no idea how live rounds came to be on the set.

"Safety is Hannah's number one priority on 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," they said.

Sheriff's deputies investigating the shooting confirmed in a press conference Wednesday that it was a live round which killed Hutchins.

The finding called into question statements by Gutierrez and assistant director Dave Halls, who both told investigators that live rounds were never kept on set.

Law enforcement officials have collected evidence from the set of "Rust," including three black revolvers, ammunition, spent casings, gun belts, and blood swabs.