Alex Baldwin has released a statement in response to the charges against him, related to the on-set shooting that killed Halyna Hutchins while filming the Western movie Rust. Since the accidental shooting that led to Hutchins' death, Baldwin has been insistent about his innocence and alleging ignorance about the fact that the gun was loaded. While he has reached a settlement with Hutchins' family, coming to with the court system hasn't been as simple.
After being charged by the Santa Fe District Attorney on January 31, Baldwin and Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the set armorer, are facing charges of involuntary manslaughter. The charges could lead to up to five years in prison. Baldwin's legal team has released a statement, calling the charges entirely unconstitutional. Check out their statement below, via Deadline:
“The prosecutors in this case have committed an unconstitutional and elementary legal error by charging Mr. Baldwin under a statute that did not exist on the date of the accident. It thus appears that the government intended to charge the current version of the firearm enhancement statute, which was not enacted until May 18, 2022, seven months after the accident."
What Happened With Alec Baldwin And The Rust Shooting?
On October 21, 2021, Baldwin was using a prop gun, which he allegedly believed was unloaded. Tragically, the Colt 45. revolver was armed, despite first assistant director David Halls reportedly informing the set that the gun was cold. Afterward, Baldwin allegedly shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza during a rehearsal.
After the Rust shooting, Baldwin has been fired from several movies, though he has neglected to name any of them. Several lawsuits have also been filed in response to the shooting — and not only from the surviving family of Hutchins. Mamie Mitchell, the script supervisor of Rust, Gutierrez-Reed, and Baldwin have all filed separate lawsuits. Now, two of them will be facing criminal charges.
Baldwin's attorneys have been trying to disqualify special prosecutor Andrea Reeb from serving during the trial, as she is also a state representative. Additionally, Baldwin claims that he never pulled the trigger of the prop gun and is therefore not responsible for Hutchins' death. With new Rust shooting details being revealed regularly, there is no way to know where the case will go for Alec Baldwin moving forward.
Source: Deadline
