Criminal charges against actor Alec Baldwin have been dropped in New Mexico, according to Baldwin’s attorneys.
Earlier this year, Alec Baldwin was charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter for the shooting death of Halyna Hutchins.
Baldwin shot and killed 42-year-old Halyna Hutchins and injured 48-year-old Joel Souza on the movie set of ‘Rust’ in Santa Fe, Mexico in October 2021.
Baldwin pulled the trigger on the set of ‘Rust’ – according to FBI analysis.
Now, all charges are going to be dropped against the 65-year-old actor.
“We are pleased with the decision to dismiss the case against Alec Baldwin & we encourage a proper investigation into the facts and circumstances of this tragic accident,” according to Baldwin’s attorney per NBC.
Breaking: Criminal charges against Alec Baldwin dropped in New Mexico. His attorneys say
“We are pleased with the decision to dismiss the case against Alec Baldwin & we encourage a proper investigation into the facts and circumstances of this tragic accident.” @NBCNews— Vicky Nguyen (@VickyNguyenTV) April 20, 2023
.@ABC NEWS SPECIAL REPORT: Charges against Alec Baldwin have been dropped in the fatal on-set “Rust” shooting, according to sources familiar with the matter. https://t.co/sWqeUyB78t https://t.co/rjpIyFeDag
— ABC News (@ABC) April 20, 2023
Deadline reported:
Less than two weeks before a mini-trial is scheduled to begin in New Mexico over the October 2021 killing of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, all charges are going to be dropped against Alec Baldwin, for now.
Recently appointed special prosecutors Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis are expected to be filing paperwork soon, perhaps even today, to dismiss the involuntary manslaughter claims against the multi-Emmy-winning actor without prejudice, we hear. That means, as they are set to investigate further into what actually went down that terrible day on the Bonanza Creek Ranch set near Santa Fe, this case could be resurrected in the future.
Representatives for the Santa Fe’s District Attorney’s office had no comment on the situation when contacted by Deadline Thursday.
As of now, Baldwin’s co-defendant and ex-Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed still has charges standing against her, we understand — thereby keeping the probe open and retaining subpoena power for prosecutors going forward.
Both Gutierrez-Reed and Baldwin had previously pleaded not guilty. Since an interview on ABC just weeks after the slaying of Hutchins, Baldwin has repeatedly insisted he did not pull the trigger on the 1880s prop gun that killed the DoP. An insistence that the FBI disagreed with in its report on the matter released last year. With Baldwin lawyers last month contesting the state of the gun, further investigation into the firearm looks certain to being undertaken as a part of any renewed probe.