Alec Baldwin Manslaughter Charges Dropped in ‘Rust’ Shooting
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Involuntary manslaughter charges against Alec Baldwin in the 2021 fatal shooting of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins have been dropped, but New Mexico prosecutors said the decision doesn’t absolve the actor of criminal liability and that there will be further investigation that could lead to new charges.
The decision is the latest setback for the prosecution in a closely watched case over set safety. After the Santa Fe District Attorney’s Office charged armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed and Baldwin with two counts each of involuntary manslaughter, an amended complaint was filed downgrading the charges. The move, which significantly reduced their possible prison time to 18 months if convicted, came after lawyers for the actor and producer of the low-budget Western argued that their client was unconstitutionally charged with violating a recently amended firearm enhancement statute that didn’t exist at the time of the incident. A month later, new special prosecutors were appointed to oversee criminal charges once the prosecutor previously handling the cases was forced to step down due to a potential conflict of interest with her elected position in the New Mexico House of Representatives.
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In a statement, Jason Lewis and Kari Morrissey, the special prosecutors leading the case, said that “new facts were revealed that demand further investigation and forensic analysis in the case.
“Consequently, we cannot proceed under the current time constraints and on the facts and evidence turned over by law enforcement in its existing form,” they added, noting that the decision doesn’t absolve Baldwin of criminal liability. “We therefore will be dismissing the involuntary manslaughter charges against Mr. Baldwin to conduct further investigation.”
Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro, the lawyers representing Baldwin, said in a statement, “We are pleased with the decision to dismiss the case against Alec Baldwin and we encourage a proper investigation into the facts and circumstances of this tragic accident.”
The district attorney’s office stressed that charges could be refiled and that a follow-up investigation is still active. Lewis and Morrissey were appointed to the case after former special prosecutor Andrea Reeb bowed out.
Charges against Gutierrez-Reed will move forward, according to the special prosecutors. A two-week preliminary hearing is scheduled to start May 3 to determine if there’s enough evidence to proceed with the prosecution. Jason Bowles, Gutierrez-Reed’s lawyer, initially told The Hollywood Reporter that charges against the armorer would be dropped. The special prosecutors later said that charges against the armorer “remain unchanged.”
In a statement, Bowles praised the newly named special prosecutors for reassessing the charges.
“The new special prosecutor team has taken a very diligent and thorough approach to the entire investigation, which we welcome and have always welcomed,” he said. “They are seeking the truth and we are also. The truth about what happened will come out and the questions that we have long sought answers for will be answered. We fully expect at the end of this process that Hannah will also be exonerated.”
Filming on Rust resumed this week in Montana and is expected to be completed by the end of May, according to Melina Spadone, a lawyer for Rust Movie Productions. Shooting was suspended in October 2021 after a revolver Baldwin was holding discharged, killing Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza. Hutchins’ widower, Matthew Hutchins, is an executive producer on the movie under a settlement he reached with the production to resolve a wrongful death suit.
“The production will continue to utilize union crew members and will bar any use of working weapons and any form of ammunition,” Spadone said in a statement. “Live ammunition is — and always was — prohibited on set.”
Prior to clearing its members for work on the production, the Directors Guild of America said in a statement that the group “insisted upon extensive additional safety requirements, including dedicated safety personnel to assess risk and be present on-set throughout the production.”
SAG-AFTRA, which said in a statement that it has “tentatively safety-cleared Rust,” also stressed additional safety requirements on set, like the production barring live ammunition and weapons capable of firing ammunition of any kind as well as the presence of union field representatives on the production.
A spokesperson for the union added, “two highly regarded industry safety veterans, one a longtime stunt coordinator, are overseeing all aspects of safety as Set Safety Supervisors and will be on location throughout and available to us as necessary.”
Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed, who loaded the gun the day of the shooting and was responsible for weapons on set, have pleaded not guilty to the charges. The actor has maintained that he didn’t pull the trigger on the gun that killed Hutchins, and it discharged on its own. Prosecutors alleged that Baldwin should have assumed the gun he was handling was loaded with live rounds and known that “the first rule of gun safety is never to point a gun at someone you don’t intend on shooting,” reads a statement of probable cause. He also allegedly “contributed to or failed to mitigate or address multiple significant safety violations,” including prior misfires, and fostered an unsafe set by hiring Gutierrez-Reed as the lead armorer.
Dave Halls, the first assistant director on Rust, who was responsible for set safety and handed the gun to Baldwin, reached a plea deal on a charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon. He was sentenced to six months of probation.
April 20, 5:27 pm. Correction: A previous version of this story relying on information from Gutierrez-Reed’s attorney incorrectly stated that charges against her will be dropped.
This story originally published on April 20 at 12:34 p.m.
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