A judge in New Mexico on Friday will determine whether to dismiss Alec Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter charge in the death of Halyna Hutchins, the cinematographer who was killed by accidental gunfire while working on the set of the western flick “Rust.”
Baldwin’s legal team has been pressing Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer to toss the case against the 66-year-old actor, arguing important evidence was damaged during an investigation into the shooting.
Baldwin, a producer for “Rust” as well as its leading man, was rehearsing a scene when he mistakenly shot Hutchins on Oct. 21, 2021. He was seated in a church pew at the time, practicing a move in which he whips a pistol from its holster, when it suddenly went off. The movie’s director, Joel Souza, was also wounded.
2018 Sundance Film Festival Official Kickoff Party Hosted By SundanceTV
Sonia Recchia/Getty Images Halyna Hutchins at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival Official Kickoff Party in Park City, Utah on Jan. 19, 2018. (Sonia Recchia/Getty Images)
During a virtual court hearing on Monday, the actor’s attorneys contended the Colt .45 revolver used was “destroyed” during FBI testing in 2022, according to court documents.
The local sheriff’s office initially handed over the revolver to federal authorities for routine testing, but after Baldwin claimed in an on-air interview that he never pulled the trigger, they approved an accidental discharge test.
That process required FBI analysts to strike the firearm from several angles with a rawhide mallet, which left its firing and safety mechanisms damaged.
What’s more, investigators failed to disassemble and photograph the weapon’s parts prior to testing, the defense argued, ultimately eliminating the evidence at the heart of their case.
“They understood that this was potentially exculpatory evidence and they destroyed it anyway,” Baldwin lawyer John Bash said. “It’s outrageous and it requires dismissal.”
Prosecutors acknowledged the weapon was broken, calling it “unfortunate,” but noted that it wasn’t destroyed entirely and that its parts were still available. They added that the condition of the firearm should not prevent Baldwin’s attorneys from adequately defending him in court.
Should a judge decline to toss the charge against Baldwin, he will go to trial in July. It would be the second over the accidental gunfire on the set of “Rust,” which later resumed filming in Montana.
In March, armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for her role in the shooting and was sentenced to 18 months in prison.
If convicted, Baldwin could face a similar amount of time behind bars.
With News Wire Services
