On Tuesday, actor and producer Alec Baldwin was formally charged with involuntary manslaughter in the deadly 2021 shooting on the set of his Western movie “Rust” in New Mexico.
Last month, Santa Fe District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies announced she’d be bringing the charges following an investigation into the death of the movie’s cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins, on the film’s set in October 2021. Similar charges were also formally filed against the film’s armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed.
As we previously reported, Baldwin was holding a gun during a rehearsal when it discharged, striking and killing Hutchins. Director Joel Souza was also wounded. According to a probable cause statement prosecutors filed with the court on Tuesday, an investigator working for the prosecution claimed that Baldwin simply failed to address “multiple significant safety violations” while the set. It was also noted that training in basic firearms safety rules was made available to Baldwin.
“The evidence clearly indicates that Baldwin recklessly ignored these rules, on multiple occasions, resulting in the fatal shooting,” the statement said.
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According to ABC news, first assistant director David Halls has already agreed to plead no contest for the charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon. However, there is no set timeline for approval and a plea agreement is pending a judge’s approval.
Baldwin’s lawyer, Luke Nikas, has since called the charging decision “a terrible miscarriage of justice” and promised to fight the charges.
“Mr. Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun — or anywhere on the movie set,” Nikas said in a statement following the announcement of charges. “He relied on the professionals with whom he worked, who assured him the gun did not have live rounds.”
Meanwhile, Gutierrez-Reed’s attorneys, Jason Bowles and Todd Bullion, also said in a statement Tuesday that they plan to “fight these charges and expect that a jury will find Hannah not guilty.”