Alec Baldwin Pleads Not Guilty to Involuntary Manslaughter Charge in Halyna Hutchins Shooting
Actor Alec Baldwin has entered a not guilty plea on a new involuntary manslaughter charge in the shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on a New Mexico movie set in October 2021. This comes after prosecutors dropped similar charges against him last year but continued to investigate the matter.
Baldwin made the plea as he waived his right to an arraignment, according to court documents. Prosecutors brought the case before a grand jury in Santa Fe earlier this month, alleging that Baldwin caused Hutchins’s death either by negligence or “total disregard or indifference” for safety. The grand jury decided to indict him.
During a rehearsal in October 2021, Baldwin, who also served as a co-producer on the western drama, was pointing a gun at Hutchins when it fired, hitting her and wounding the film’s director, Joel Souza. Hutchins later died at a nearby hospital. Baldwin has maintained that he did not pull the trigger but had pulled back the hammer of the gun before it fired. He believed the weapon was safe and loaded with blanks.
The prosecution’s case centers on Baldwin’s role as an actor holding the weapon and as a co-producer with legal responsibility for production safety. Previously, charges against Baldwin were dropped due to evidence suggesting that the hammer of the revolver might have been modified. However, an independent forensic test commissioned by prosecutors concluded that Baldwin would have had to pull the trigger for the gun to fire the live round that killed Hutchins.
Baldwin’s defense team has described the situation as a “terrible tragedy” and criticized what they see as a misguided prosecution. They are looking forward to their day in court. David Halls, the film’s assistant director who handed the weapon to Baldwin, has already been sentenced on a charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon. The movie’s chief weapons handler, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who had handled the gun before Halls, is also facing charges of involuntary manslaughter and will face trial this year.
In addition to the criminal charges, Baldwin and his co-producers are facing civil lawsuits seeking financial compensation, including from members of the Rust crew. However, the actor has reached an undisclosed settlement with Hutchins’s family. The Rust Movie Productions company has also paid a $100,000 fine to workplace safety regulators in New Mexico.
Despite the tragic incident, the film resumed production in April of last year, with Matthew Hutchins, the husband of the late cinematographer, serving as an executive producer.
The case continues to draw attention and raises important questions about on-set safety protocols and the responsibilities of actors and producers. As the legal proceedings unfold, the industry will be closely watching the outcome and its potential impact on future productions.
