Grand jury indicts Alec Baldwin in fatal shooting of cinematographer on movie set

A grand jury indicted Alec Baldwin on Friday on an involuntary manslaughter cost in a 2021 deadly taking pictures throughout a rehearsal on a film set in New Mexico, reviving a dormant case in opposition to the A-list actor.

Special prosecutors introduced the case earlier than a grand jury in Santa Fe this week, months after receiving a brand new evaluation of the gun that was used.

Baldwin’s authorized crew didn’t instantly reply to requests for touch upon the indictment, and particular prosecutors declined to reply questions after spending a few day and a half presenting their case to the grand jury.

While the continuing is shrouded in secrecy, two of the witnesses seen on the courthouse included crew members — one who was current when the deadly shot was fired and one other who had walked off the set the day earlier than as a result of security considerations.

Baldwin, the lead actor and a co-producer on the Western film Rust, was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins throughout a rehearsal on a film set outdoors Santa Fe in October 2021 when the gun went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza.

Baldwin has mentioned he pulled again the hammer, however not the set off, and the gun fired.

Judges not too long ago agreed to placed on maintain a number of civil lawsuits looking for compensation from Baldwin and producers of Rust after prosecutors mentioned they’d current fees to a grand jury. Plaintiffs in these fits embody members of the movie crew.

Special prosecutors dismissed an involuntary manslaughter cost in opposition to Baldwin in April, saying they have been knowledgeable the gun might need been modified earlier than the taking pictures and malfunctioned. They later pivoted and commenced weighing whether or not to refile a cost in opposition to Baldwin after receiving a brand new evaluation of the gun.

The evaluation from consultants in ballistics and forensic testing relied on alternative components to reassemble the gun fired by Baldwin, after components of the pistol have been damaged throughout testing by the FBI. The report examined the gun and markings it left on a spent cartridge to conclude that the set off needed to have been pulled or depressed.

The evaluation led by Lucien Haag of Forensic Science Services in Arizona said that though Baldwin repeatedly denied pulling the set off, “given the tests, findings and observations reported here, the trigger had to be pulled or depressed sufficiently to release the fully cocked or retracted hammer of the evidence revolver.”

The weapons supervisor on the film set, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, has pleaded not responsible to involuntary manslaughter and proof tampering within the case. Her trial is scheduled to start in February.

Rust assistant director and security coordinator David Halls pleaded no contest to unsafe dealing with of a firearm final March and acquired a suspended sentence of six months of probation. He agreed to cooperate within the investigation of the taking pictures.

An earlier FBI report on the company’s evaluation of the gun discovered that, as is frequent with firearms of that design, it might go off with out pulling the set off if power was utilized to an uncocked hammer, reminiscent of by dropping the weapon.

The solely means the testers might get it to fireside was by putting the gun with a mallet whereas the hammer was down and resting on the cartridge, or by pulling the set off whereas it was totally cocked. The gun ultimately broke throughout testing.

The 2021 taking pictures resulted in a collection of civil lawsuits, together with wrongful demise claims filed by members of Hutchins’ household, centered on accusations that the defendants have been lax with security requirements. Baldwin and different defendants have disputed these allegations.

The Rust Movie Productions firm has paid a $100,000 nice to state office security regulators after a scathing narrative of failures in violation of ordinary business protocols, together with testimony that manufacturing managers took restricted or no motion to deal with two misfires on set earlier than the deadly taking pictures.

The filming of Rust resumed final 12 months in Montana, beneath an settlement with the cinematographer’s widower, Matthew Hutchins, that made him an govt producer.