Alec Baldwin 'Rust' Manslaughter Case Dismissed Over Withheld Evidence

American actor Alec Baldwin's case for involuntary manslaughter has been dismissed against him as a New Mexico court found key evidence over a fatal shooting on the set of 'Rust' had been withheld from the defence. Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer said that bullets potentially linked to the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, which could have been favourable to Baldwin's case, had not been shared by police and prosecutors. The Hollywood A-lister could have been sentenced to 18 months in prison if found guilty.

Baldwin was holding a gun in the direction of Hutchins during a rehearsal of the film 'Rust' in October 2021 when the weapon fired, killing Hutchins and wounding the film's director. He was charged in January 2023. The film's armourer Hannah Gutierrez, who allegedly loaded the fatal weapon, is serving 18 months in prison for involuntary manslaughter.

Alec Baldwin 'Rust' Case

Judge Sommer said on July 12, "The state's willful withholding of this information was intentional and deliberate. If this conduct does not rise to the level of bad faith, it certainly comes so near to bad faith as to show signs of scorching prejudice. The court concludes that this conduct is highly prejudicial to the defendant."

Earlier in the case, prosecutors claimed Alec Baldwin ignored basic gun safety laws and acted recklessly on set. His lawyer, Alex Spiro, argued the actor had no responsibility for checking the weapon's deadly contents and did not know it contained live rounds. Spiro, during the recent trial, introduced evidence that live bullets potentially linked to the shooting had been handed to police, but not disclosed to Baldwin's lawyers.

Matthew Hutchins, Hutchins's widower, following the shooting had filed a lawsuit which was soon discharged after the settlement. At the time of the settlement, Matthew Hutchins didn’t seem to blame Baldwin for the shooting. He said, “I have no interest in engaging in recriminations or attributing blame (to the producers or Baldwin). All of us believe Halyna’s death was a terrible accident. I am grateful that the producers and the entertainment community have come together to pay tribute to Halyna’s final work. 

The gun was reportedly handed to the police by a 'good samaritan' earlier in 2024. Alex Spiro accused the police of having "buried" evidence by not filing it under the "Rust" case, depriving the defence of a chance to see it. Crime scene technician Marissa Poppell, under questioning from Spiro, said she had catalogued the bullets but had been told not to file them under the "Rust" case.

Two prosecutors on the case, Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis had sent the gun for another round of forensic testing. The results claimed that the incident could have only been caused if the trigger was somehow pulled. It stated, “This fatal incident was the consequence of the hammer being manually retracted to its fully rearward and cocked position followed, at some point, by the pull or rearward depression of the trigger,” the report concluded.

“Although Alec Baldwin repeatedly denies pulling the trigger, 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.” Based on this, the prosecutors want to take up the case again given these “additional facts” have surfaced pointing towards Baldwin’s culpability.