SANTA FE, N.M. — The next phase in the trial of Hannah Gutierrez-Reed has begun. She is the former “Rust” armorer who is facing involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence charges.

On Monday, prosecutors rested their case, so it was the defense’s first shot Tuesday to try to sway the jury. They are arguing that Gutierrez-Reed is being used as a scapegoat by “Rust” producers. Her defense lawyers tried to drive home that point by calling OSHA investigators to the stand.

Through that testimony, it was revealed that OSHA fined the “Rust” production $100,000 – that’s the highest fine they are allowed to issue in New Mexico. A summary of their findings stated that the production failed to enforce any safety rules or hold enough safety meetings so workers knew about the safety policies.

During the cross examination, the state argued that OSHA’s findings should not hold weight in this case because they did not conduct a criminal investigation and did not have information from local law enforcement. On top of that, the state pointed out that OSHA can’t fine individual workers – only employers.

A private investigator hired by the defense also took the stand Tuesday. He testified that this case is unique because it wasn’t a case of who had done it, but rather a case of how did this happen. He claimed the sheriff’s office didn’t take that into account during the initial investigation. He claimed they just focused on Gutierrez-Reed.