(IntegrityTimes.com) – Actor Alec Baldwin has refiled to dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge relating to the fatal shooting on the set of his Rust western movie. The actor’s request that the charge be dropped by the New Mexico judge was previously denied. Prosecutors are reportedly planning to introduce new evidence to the case that allegedly shows the actor disregarding safety protocols on the set and using firearms unsafely during training.
The film’s armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was found guilty in March 2024 of the involuntary manslaughter of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in 2021, and was sentenced to 18 months in jail in April. She was found not guilty of the second charge of tampering with evidence. Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer concluded in her verdict that Gutierrez-Reed made a safe weapon lethal and that her actions amounted to a serious violent offense. Baldwin, 65, is due in court in July.
Filming for Rust resumed in February 2023. Working firearms and ammunition were banned from the set, and Tenet Production Safety officers Paul Jordan and Gary Jensen joined the production. Hutchins’ widower, Matthew, is serving as executive producer of an upcoming documentary on the Ukrainian cinematographer.
Baldwin is no stranger to controversy, and has been branded “Angry Alec” by tabloid journalists for his history of tantrums. During a custody battle a voicemail he left with his then 12-year-old daughter Ireland surfaced, in which he called her a “thoughtless little pig”. The actor has also been involved in more than one violent altercation with photographers.
Baldwin’s legal team asked the court again in the June 17 motion to dismiss the charge. The attorneys claimed that the indictment should be dismissed because the prosecutor failed to disclose essential information relating to the investigation. They argued that the state routinely withheld information and that it possesses thousands of documents and files that would aid the actor’s defense.
Baldwin’s legal team referenced Brady v. Maryland and New Mexico’s laws when arguing that the constitutional rights of the actor had been violated. The attorneys pleaded with Sommer to either dismiss the case or reduce prejudice because of the alleged misconduct of the prosecution.
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