Judge Denies Alec Baldwin’s Request to Dismiss Manslaughter Charge

By Brad Brooks

June 28 - On Friday, a judge in New Mexico turned down actor Alec Baldwin’s request to drop a manslaughter charge related to the 2021 shooting death of a cinematographer on the set of the movie “Rust.”

In her decision, the judge dismissed the arguments made by Baldwin’s lawyers during hearings on June 21 and the following Monday. Baldwin’s legal team had argued that the charge should be dropped because the gun involved in the incident was damaged during FBI testing after the shooting, which prevented them from conducting their own tests.

Baldwin is set to go to trial in July.

The incident occurred when cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot with a live round after Baldwin pointed a gun at her while she was setting up a camera on a film set near Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Baldwin, known for his role in “30 Rock,” has denied responsibility for Hutchins’ death. He claims the gun went off on its own after he pointed it at Hutchins and cocked it, insisting he did not pull the trigger. This claim has become a key point in the case.

Hannah Gutierrez, the armorer for “Rust,” who accidentally loaded a live round into the revolver, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to 18 months in prison. Baldwin faces the same potential sentence if found guilty.

Baldwin’s lawyers argued that the prosecution’s case was based on the unproven idea that the gun was working correctly and could not have fired unless Baldwin pulled the trigger. They claimed the gun had been modified, making it possible to fire without pulling the trigger.

Judge Mary Sommer, in her ruling, stated that Baldwin’s attorneys failed to prove that the prosecutors had damaged the gun intentionally to prevent it from proving anyone’s innocence. They also couldn’t show that they couldn’t get “comparable evidence” after the gun was damaged.

Sommer acknowledged that the gun is a crucial piece of evidence in the case and said that prosecutors would need to bring in witnesses to explain to the jury how the gun was damaged and why it matters.

Initially, prosecutors had charged Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter in January 2023, but this charge was dropped after Baldwin’s legal team presented evidence that the revolver had been modified to fire without the trigger being pulled.

However, an independent firearms expert later determined that the gun would not fire from the full cock position without the trigger being pulled.

Kari Morrissey, an experienced criminal defense attorney from Albuquerque, was appointed as a special prosecutor in the Rust case in March 2023. She took the case to a grand jury, which charged Baldwin a second time with involuntary manslaughter earlier this year.

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