Alec Baldwin has vowed to fight in court if he is charged with involuntary manslaughter for fatally shooting cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of his film Rust in October 2021.
On Tuesday, New Mexico prosecutors announced they would present a case against Baldwin to a grand jury.
The actor’s lawyer, Luke Nikas, called the decision “regrettable” and said he intends to fight the case in court.
“It is unfortunate that a terrible tragedy has led to this misguided prosecution.” “We will answer all charges in court,” the lawyers said.
Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis, the special prosecutors in charge of the case, said they would take the case to the grand jury within the next two months for consideration for criminal charges.
If convicted, the father of eight children could face up to 18 months in prison.
Alec Baldwin’s lawyer called the decision to potentially charge his client with involuntary manslaughter “unfortunate” and said he planned to take the case to trial after the actor shot Halyna Hutchins on the set of “Rust.”
Baldwin fatally shot cameraman Hutchins (pictured) on the set of his western “Rust” in October 2021. He insists the gun fired spontaneously when he hit director Joel Souza in the shoulder before shooting Hutchins
“After extensive investigations over the past few months, additional facts have come to light that we believe establish Mr. Baldwin as criminally involved in the death of Halyna Hutchins and the shooting of Joel Souza,” Morrissey and Lewis said in a statement.
“We believe the appropriate course of action is to allow a panel of New Mexico citizens to decide from here whether Mr. Baldwin should be held for criminal proceedings.”
News of the possible charges comes as Baldwin’s wife was spotted in New York City on Tuesday. Hilaria Baldwin was spotted outside her Manhattan apartment wearing a white tank top and gray denim pants.
Hilaria supported Alec for a long time after the shooting. In February, she made a long social media post expressing her love for her husband.
“But here we are…still standing, surrounded by all of you amazing people, our little babies…and together,” she explained. “In this with you, Alec… I’m here, we’re here… never alone.”
On October 21, 2021, Baldwin was filming a scene in a church when he pulled the trigger on his Colt .45 revolver and fatally shot camerawoman Halyna Hutchins.
He has insisted the gun fired spontaneously when it hit director Joel Souza in the shoulder before shooting Hutchins.
Hutchins was taken to the hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.
Baldwin was interviewed by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office after her death as he showed great emotion for his actions.
The first prosecutor, Andrea Reeb, was in charge of the case and took a year to charge Baldwin while giving several interviews to the press.
News of the possible charges comes as Baldwin’s wife was spotted in New York City on Tuesday
Hilaria supported Alec long after the shooting. In February, she published a lengthy social media post expressing her love for her husband
Baldwin with Hutchins (center) and other cast members on set in Santa Fe while filming the film Rust. Baldwin fired a Colt .45 revolver, fatally shooting Hutchins. He now faces charges of negligent homicide
Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis, the special prosecutors in charge of the case, said they would take the case to the grand jury within the next two months, where they would consider criminal charges against Baldwin
Baldwin and his lawyers argued that he was being made an example of by a fame-hungry, fanatical prosecutor.
Reeb resigned from the case before Mary Carmack-Altwies, Santa Fe’s elected district attorney, then recused herself from the case after a judge ruled she could not cooperate with a special prosecutor.
“Carmack-Altwies had said her office was too understaffed to handle the case without outside help,” Variety Australia reported.
After more than a year of investigation, the actor was charged with involuntary manslaughter in January, but the charges were dropped in April this year after his defense lawyers raised doubts about the weapon’s functionality.
They suspected that the weapon he was using may have been altered before he handled it, which then caused it to malfunction when he pulled the trigger.
A report published in August of that year stated that the trigger must have been pulled for the revolver to fire and that it was not modified.
Baldwin’s special prosecutors said they plan to re-indict Baldwin.
“This decision does not exonerate Mr. Baldwin from criminal guilt and the charges may be refiled,” Morrissey and Lewis said.
Baldwin, who has yet to comment on developments in his case, continued to say that it was a fatal accident for which he bears no responsibility.
Hutchins’ widower said Baldwin was initially compassionate and supportive of the family.
Baldwin was interviewed by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office after her death as he showed great emotion for his actions. Hutchins’ widower said Baldwin was initially compassionate and supportive of the family
Baldwin, his wife Hilaria and their seven of their eight children at a film festival in East Hampton on October 7. If convicted, the father and the actor face up to 18 months in prison
Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the film’s master-at-arms responsible for the safety of the cast and crew, was also charged with involuntary manslaughter. She is scheduled to go on trial next February.
Rust Assistant Principal Dave Halls accepted a settlement for negligent use of a deadly weapon.
In March, Halls was sentenced to six months of supervised probation.
It’s still unclear how the live rounds on set ended.