Daily Times

Alec Baldwin has vowed to fight the involuntary manslaughter charges announces today by prosecutors in New Mexico, calling them a ‘terrible miscarriage of justice’. He and Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed are to be charged with involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. New Mexico First Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies and Rust Special Prosecutor Andrea Reeb announced the charges in a written statement today.

Both Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed face a maximum of 18 months in prison if convicted. Dave Halls, the Assistant Director, has pleaded guilty to the charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon. In a statement, his attorney said: ‘This decision distorts Halyna Hutchins’ tragic death and represents a terrible miscarriage of justice.

‘Mr Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun – or anywhere on the movie set. ‘He relied on the professionals with whom he worked, who assured him the gun did not have live rounds. We will fight these charges and we will win.’ Gutierrez-Reed’s lawyers issued a similar statement.

‘Hannah is, and has always been, very emotional and sad about this tragic accident. But she did not commit involuntary manslaughter. ‘These charges 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 Hannah will be exonerated of wrongdoing by a jury.’ Prosecutors say they are confident with the decision. ‘If any one of these three people-Alec Baldwin, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed or David Halls-had done their job, Halyna Hutchins would be alive today.

‘It’s that simple,’ said Andrea Reeb, the special prosecutor appointed by the DA to the case. Baldwin has not been seen today, but his glamorous wife Hilaria put on a brave face for the school run shortly before the announcement. ‘The evidence clearly shows a pattern of criminal disregard for safety on the ‘Rust’ film set. ‘In New Mexico, there is no room for film sets that don’t take our state’s commitment to gun safety and public safety seriously, ‘ she added.

Prosecutors have not formally filed the charges – they will do so by the end of the month. ‘There is a very clear process for pursuing justice in this case. We are committed to upholding the integrity of that process to ensure equal justice under the law,’ Carmack-Altwies added. After that, the three defendants will have to make a first appearance but they will be allowed to do so virtually.

Baldwin, 64, accidentally shot and killed Halyna Hutchins on the set of the Western movie in October 2021.

In the 15 months that have passed, he emphatically denied responsibility for the accident, insisting he did not pull the trigger, despite a forensic FBI analysis of the prop gun he used concluding that he did. Baldwin was sued by Halyna’s widower, Matthew, in 2022 but settled the lawsuit with an undisclosed sum. He also made Matthew an executive producer on the film, which will resume production in Los Angeles. Prosecutors have resisted criticism of the long delay in making a decision. They say they were forced to wait for reports from both the FBI – which took ten months – and the local Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office – which took a year. There was no press conference to announce the decision today. Instead, the DA’s office issued a written statement to media which was also published online. Along with Baldwin, several others were on the hook for charges. They are Assistant Director Dave Halls, who handed Baldwin the gun for the fatal scene, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, a young, ‘careless’ armorer who was in charge of loading the weapons and checking that the rounds were blunt and not live and Seth Kenney, the most reclusive of the group, who was the owner of the prop-shop used by the production. Halls has never spoken in the media, but he counter-sued Baldwin last year and denied responsibility. Gutierrez-Reed denied responsibility repeatedly in a series of statements from her attorney. Kenney has been the quietest, shying away from the ferocious public attention on the case. But in his first police interview, he immediately blamed the incident on Gutierrez-Reed. ‘She wanted to shoot live ammo out of the guns, the TV movie guns. I said no f——- way obviously. And then she acknowledged. ‘Down below, right, you did see where she said I’m going to shoot them out of mine now,’ he said, referring to texts between the pair.