TThe case against actor Alec Baldwin, who was charged with manslaughter after a fatal shooting on the film’s set Rust in 2021, he will be tried in July, despite a series of back and forth between prosecutors and the defense.
Defense attorneys recently attempted to dismiss the case due to damage to the gun during FBI forensic testing. “We will never be able to use our own expert to examine the original condition of that firearm,” said attorney John Bash, who represents Baldwin. “It’s not fair that a criminal defendant doesn’t have that opportunity.”
New Mexico Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer rejected the request on June 28, saying Baldwin’s lawyers had not offered any evidence “other than speculation” that the gun could have exonerated him. Jury selection in the case is scheduled for July 9.
Baldwin, 66, said he did not pull the trigger on the prop gun he was pointing at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, who shot and killed the 42-year-old man. The shot also injured director Joel Souza in October 2021.
If convicted, Baldwin could face up to 18 months in prison. The actor-producer may also face other legal challenges. Civil lawsuits filed against Baldwin and other film producers were temporarily halted by the judge, who said he would present the charges to a grand jury.
Here’s what you should know about the upcoming case.
What happened
Film armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed in Rust set loaded a revolver with what was believed to be “dummy ammunition,” which does not contain explosives, according to Gutierrez-Reed’s lawyers.
While rehearsing on set, Dave Halls, the film’s assistant director, picked up a prop gun and handed it to Baldwin. Halls called the firearm a “cold gun,” a phrase that signals the weapon did not contain any live cartridges, according to a warrant from the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office. Baldwin was rehearsing a scene with the revolver that required that he pointed the gun at the camera when it allegedly went off, according to the warrant. The shot hit Hutchins in the chest and Souza in the shoulder.
Hutchins was transported to the University of New Mexico Hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.
Accusations against Baldwin
Santa Fe County prosecutors first charged Baldwin with manslaughter in Hutchins’ death in January 2023. “After a thorough review of the evidence and the laws of the state of New Mexico, I have determined that there is sufficient evidence to file criminal charges against Alec Baldwin and other members of the ‘Rust’ film crew,” New Mexico First Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies said in a statement. online statement at the time. But prosecutors later dismissed the charge in April 2023, although they said the charges could be refiled.
Following a new analysis of the weapon, Baldwin was once again charged with manslaughter after a grand jury indicted him in January 2024. Baldwin pleaded not guilty.
In the upcoming trial, prosecutors alternatively charged Baldwin, meaning the jury will decide whether to convict him of manslaughter and under which definition of involuntary manslaughter his actions fall. He could be found guilty of negligent use of a firearm, or of circumspection, meaning he acted indifferently or showed disregard for the safety of others.
Baldwin stated that although he pulled the hammer, the gun went off without pulling the trigger.
The FBI conducted an accidental discharge test on the weapon, which required the firearm to be struck with a rawhide hammer. The gun broke during the process, which is why Baldwin prosecutors tried to get the case dismissed. Under a different analysis of the revolver by Lucien Haag of Forensic Science Services, the investigation concluded that “the trigger had to be “pulled or pressed far enough” for the gun to fire.
There has been a lot of talk about the lack of safety protocols in the Rust movie set. According to Los Angeles Times, at least six crew members walked off the set during the film’s production because of working conditions, including gun safety. One investigation by the The New Mexico Department of the Environment’s Occupational Health and Safety Bureau (OHSB) found that Rust “exhibitions[ed] employees to the serious risks associated with the use of firearms.” As of February 2023, Rust Movie Productions, LLC. settled with the OHSB and paid a $100,000 fine.
Rust resumed filming in April 2023 after a wrongful death lawsuit was settled against the production company alongside several other people involved in the film following the Hutchins’ deaths. As part of the deal, Matthew Hutchins, Hutchins’ husband, took on the role of executive producer on set.
Hannah Gutierrez-Reed
In addition to the impending case against Baldwin, Gutierrez-Reed has also been charged with involuntary manslaughter as well as tampering with evidence. (The latter charge came after the defendant allegedly gave narcotics to someone to “avoid apprehension, prosecution or conviction of himself,” according to the amended criminal complaint filed by prosecutors.) Gutierrez-Reed was convicted on the manslaughter charge , but acquitted of evidence tampering in March 2024. She was sentenced to 18 months in prison.
Prosecutors hope to call her to testify during Baldwin’s trial, although Gutierrez-Reed invoked her Fifth Amendment rights during a pretrial interview. Prosecutors asked the court to grant her “use immunity” so that anything she said at trial could not be used against her in any future proceedings. which the court denied.
His lawyers are seeking Gutierrez-Reed’s immediate release from prison and have called for a new trial because prosecutors failed to turn over “bombshell exculpatory evidence” that they say could have led to a different outcome in the case.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
