SANTA FE, New Mexico — Prosecutors on Thursday said they would dismiss a manslaughter charge against Alec Baldwin in the fatal 2021 murder of a cameraman on the set of the Western ‘Rust’, but warned that their investigation was not yet complete and the actor was not yet complete.
Special prosecutors Kari Morrisey and Jason Lewis announced their decision to drop the felony charge after “new facts came to light that warranted further investigation and forensic analysis,” without giving details. The manslaughter charge against Hannah Gutierrez Reed, who is responsible for the guns in the film, remains unchanged, they said.
“We cannot act under the current time constraints and based on the facts and evidence provided by law enforcement,” the prosecutor’s office said in a statement. “This decision does not remove Mr. Baldwin’s criminal responsibility, and the charges may be re-indicted. Our follow-up investigation will continue.”
Baldwin’s lawyers were the first to announce that prosecutors were changing course, a dramatic turnaround for the Hollywood luminary, who just months ago faced a multi-year prison sentence.
“We are pleased with the decision to close the case against Alec Baldwin and call for a proper investigation into the facts and circumstances of this tragic incident,” defense attorneys Luc Nikas and Alex Spiro said in a statement.
When the news of his dismissal arrived, Baldwin was at the Yellowstone Movie Ranch filming the Rust reboot. Pre-production was underway Thursday at a new location in Montana, 18 months after filming halted cinematographer Halina Hutchins, Rust Movie Productions said.
Baldwin pointed a gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal when he fired, killing Hutchins and injuring director Joel Sousa.
Baldwin said the gun went off by accident and he didn’t pull the trigger. However, the FBI’s forensic report showed that the weapon could not have been fired if the trigger had not been pulled.
John Day, a Santa Fe criminal defense attorney who is not involved in the Rust case, highlighted the arrival of a new prosecution team in late March and suggested that this may have been a factor in the decision to drop the charges.
“This is very different from what the original prosecutor said,” he said. “It does raise the question that the Santa Fe District Attorney originally said, ‘We hold Alec Baldwin liable in part because of the role of the CEO of the production and (that) it was a very sloppy proceeding’ – does this mean that the new prosecutors different point of view?
Lawyers for Gutierrez-Rid said they fully expect her to be acquitted in court.
“The truth about what happened will come out, and we will get answers to questions that we have been looking for answers for a long time,” lawyers Jason Bowles and Todd Bullion said in a statement.
The case against Baldwin was already on the wane. The weapons charge, which meant a much longer sentence, was dropped and the first special prosecutor appointed in the case resigned.
The 40-year career as a top-notch actor includes early blockbuster The Hunt for Red October and a starring role in the sitcom Studio 30, as well as iconic appearances in Martin Scorsese’s The Departed and the film adaptation of the novel. Glengarry Glen Ross by David Mamet. In recent years, he has been known for his impression of former President Donald Trump on Saturday Night Live.
After the execution, the 65-year-old man did little work, but was hardly hiding. He remained active on social media, making videos on Instagram and posting interviews and photos of his wife and seven children on podcasts.
Rust security coordinator and assistant director David Halls dropped out of his appeal for unsafe firearms in March and was given a six-month suspended sentence.
Plans to resume filming were laid out last year by cinematographer Matthew Hutchins’ widower in a proposed wrongful death lawsuit settlement that would make him an executive producer. Souza said he would return to directing Rust to honor the legacy of Galina Hutchins.
Despite the settlement, lawyers for the Hutchins family said they welcomed the criminal charges against Baldwin when they were filed. They had no immediate comment on Thursday’s upcoming layoffs.
After a scathing safety review by New Mexico regulators detailing ignored complaints and misfires before Hutchins’ death in October 2021, the production company agreed to pay a $100,000 fine.
Baldwin did not travel to New Mexico to appear in court, which is not required of him by state law. Evidence hearings have been scheduled for the following month to determine whether to proceed to trial.
Santa Fe District Attorney Mary Carmack-Oltwis has previously said her office is seeking justice for Hutchins’ death and wants to show that no one is above the law when it comes to firearms and public safety. She says the death of the Ukrainian filmmaker was tragic and could have been prevented.
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Dalton reported from Los Angeles. Associated Press contributor Susan Montoya Bryan of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
