Alec Baldwin’s wife Hilaria was seen with a stone face on Thursday afternoon, hours after her husband learned he was to be charged with involuntary manslaughter for the filming of his film Rust.
Hilaria, 39, was joined by several of her seven children when she arrived at her Manhattan home.
Alec was nowhere to be seen. His attorneys said he plans to contest the allegations and insisted he could not be held responsible for the on-set prop guns, which were the responsibility of gunsmith Hannah Gutierrez-Reed.
She, too, will be charged, the Santa Fe District Attorney said on Thursday morning.
Hilaria Baldwin is seen in New York City on Thursday, hours after her husband was charged with involuntary manslaughter
The 39-year-old ignored the waiting photographers as she left home in sparkly slippers
Hilaria, a yoga teacher, kept her head bowed amid the waiting photographers
She later returned to the home with several of her seven children
Alec Baldwin’s Massachusetts-born wife did her best to ignore the waiting photographers
The film’s assistant director, Dave Halls, pleaded guilty to negligence and received a six-month suspended sentence.
Hilaria, who married the Oscar-nominated actor in 2012, was spotted taking her children to school on Thursday – before the charges were announced.
When she went to pick them up later that afternoon, her facial expression had changed noticeably.
Santa Fe prosecutor Mary Carmack-Altwies snarled at Baldwin as she announced the charges, saying, “An actor doesn’t get a free pass,” as she insisted he pulled the trigger on the gun that killed Hutchins.
Baldwin has vowed to fight the charges, calling them a “horrible miscarriage of justice”.
Although prosecutors announced the charges, it remains unclear how or why live rounds ever made it onto the set and whether Baldwin pulled the trigger. He insists he didn’t – and has refuted an FBI report he claims he must have.
He and Gutierrez-Reed face up to 18 months in prison if convicted of involuntary manslaughter.
If they are also convicted of weapon enhancement on this charge, they face a mandatory five-year prison sentence.
In a statement, Baldwin’s attorney said: “This decision distorts the tragic death of Halyna Hutchins and constitutes a horrific miscarriage of justice. Mr. Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun – or anywhere on the film set.
The 39-year-old was seen Thursday morning before the charges were announced
She dropped the children off at school and returned to the family’s Manhattan apartment
Mary Carmack-Altwies, New Mexico’s First Judicial District Attorney, said in an interview with CNN today, “An actor doesn’t get a free pass just because he’s an actor.” She vowed to take the case to court
The gun Baldwin fired while filming Rust
“He relied on the professionals he worked with to reassure him that the gun had no live cartridges. We will fight these allegations and we will win.”
Baldwin can be seen in a costume covered in fake blood in a picture posted to Instagram
Carmack-Altwies told CNN they concluded that Baldwin pulled the trigger — and that he ran a “fast and loose set” that was plagued by safety issues.
“There was such a lack of security and safety standards on this set. There were live rounds on set, they were mixed in with dummy rounds.
“Nobody checked these, or at least they didn’t check them regularly.
“They were sort of loaded into a gun, handed over to Alec Baldwin, he didn’t check, he didn’t do what he was supposed to do to make sure he was safe or that someone else was safe.
“He pointed the gun at Halyna Hutchins and pulled the trigger,” she said.
She said a “total of circumstances” led to the decision, adding, “This was a really fast and loose set. And that nobody did their job.’
Though it may have been an accident, she said Baldwin “doesn’t get a free pass” because he’s a star.
Halyna Hutchins was shot dead by actor Alec Baldwin on October 21, 2021
assistant director Dave Halls and gunsmith Hannah Gutierrez-Reed. He has pleaded guilty to a single charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon and she was charged with involuntary manslaughter
“Just because it’s an accident doesn’t mean it’s not criminal. They didn’t want to do it, they had no intention of killing, but it happened anyway, and it happened because of more than mere negligence.
“We’ve spoken to a lot of actors, A-list and others who have said they always check their guns or have someone check them in front of them.
“An actor doesn’t get a free pass just because he’s an actor. Before the law all are equal.’
Gutierrez-Reed also vowed to fight the charges.
In a statement, her attorneys said: “Hannah is and always has been very emotional and saddened by this tragic accident. But she didn’t commit involuntary manslaughter.
“These allegations are the result of a very flawed investigation and an inaccurate understanding of the full facts.
“We intend to bring the full truth to light and believe that Hannah will be acquitted of her wrongdoing by a jury.”
The public prosecutor is convinced of the decision. It was welcomed by Hutchin’s family, who issued a statement through their attorney.
“We would like to thank the Santa Fe Sheriff and the District Attorney for completing their thorough investigation and determining that the involuntary manslaughter charge of the killing of Halyna Hutchins in a knowing disregard for human life is warranted.
“Our independent investigation also confirms that the charges are well founded. It is a comfort to the family that in New Mexico no one is above the law.
“We support the charges, will cooperate fully with this prosecutor’s office and fervently hope that the justice system works to protect the public and hold those who break the law accountable.”
Announcing the indictment, Special Prosecutor Andrea Reeb said: “If any of those three people – Alec Baldwin, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed or David Halls – had done his job, Halyna Hutchins would be alive today. As simple as that.’
“The evidence clearly shows a pattern of criminal disregard for security on the ‘Rust’ film set.
“There is no place in New Mexico for movie sets that don’t take seriously our state’s commitment to gun safety and public safety,” she added.
Prosecutors have not yet formally filed the charges — they will by the end of the month.
“In this case, there is a very clear procedure for enforcing justice. We are committed to maintaining the integrity of this process to ensure equal justice before the law,” added Carmack-Altwies.
After that, the three accused have to appear for the first time, but are allowed to do so virtually.
Baldwin, 64, accidentally shot and killed Halyna Hutchins on the set of the October 2021 Western film.
For the past 15 months, he has strongly denied responsibility for the accident and insisted he did not pull the trigger, although an FBI forensic analysis of the prop gun he used concluded he did.
Baldwin was sued by Halyna’s widower Matthew in 2022 but settled the lawsuit for an undisclosed sum.
He also made Matthew executive producer on the film, which will resume production in Los Angeles.
Prosecutors have defied criticism of the long delay in decision-making.
They said they were forced to wait for reports from both the FBI – which took 10 months – and the local Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office – which took a year.
There was no press conference today to announce the decision.
Instead, the prosecutor’s office issued a written statement to the media, which was also published online.