In a surprising turn of events, Alec Baldwin’s legal team has filed a motion to dismiss his manslaughter case, citing the state’s failure to provide crucial evidence to the defense. The case revolves around the tragic shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of “Rust” in 2021. Baldwin, who was unaware that his gun contained a live round, has been at the center of a legal storm ever since.
On Friday morning, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer took a dramatic step by donning blue gloves to open an envelope containing bullets that had not been previously disclosed to the defense. Prosecutor Kari Morrissey had claimed that these bullets did not match the fatal round, but some of them were Starline Brass rounds with silver primers, similar to the live bullets found on the “Rust” set.
The judge then sent the jury home for the weekend to allow further examination of the defense’s motion. Attorney Luke Nikas argued that the prosecution’s failure to turn over relevant evidence was part of a broader pattern of disclosure violations, stating, “This is over and over and over again. This is not the first time. This is not the second time. It’s not the third time. It’s time for this case to be dismissed.”
Baldwin’s trial has been a high-profile case, with the actor facing charges for the accidental shooting of Hutchins. The source of the live bullets has remained a key mystery. In March, former police officer Troy Teske turned in a batch of bullets to the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office, claiming they would match the fatal round.
During the trial, defense attorney Alex Spiro questioned a crime scene technician about why these bullets had not been made available to the defense before the trial, accusing detectives of “burying” the evidence. The defense subsequently filed a seven-page motion seeking to dismiss the case.
At a hearing on the motion, Morrissey argued that detectives had determined early on that Teske’s bullets were not a match, calling the defense’s claims a “wild goose chase” with no evidentiary value. However, Judge Marlowe Sommer requested to see the bullets herself. After opening the envelope, crime scene technician Marissa Poppell examined them one by one. Some were BHA rounds, others were Winchesters, but some did have the distinctive Starline Brass logo.
Spiro contended that the defense never had the opportunity to analyze these bullets. Morrissey, who claimed she had never seen the bullets before, argued that if they did match the fatal bullet, it would only support the prosecution’s theory that armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed brought the live bullets to the set.
Judge Marlowe Sommer did not rule on the defense motion immediately, indicating she would hear additional testimony from the state. The hearing was held without the jury present, and the judge dismissed the jurors for the day, instructing them to return on Monday.
One possible outcome, short of dismissal, could be for the judge to instruct the jurors that they could infer the state withheld the bullets because they knew they would be helpful to the defense. Another option might be to delay the case to allow the defense a full opportunity to examine the evidence. However, Nikas argued that a delay would not suffice, as the trial had already started and defense strategies had been set.
Previously, the judge had rejected a pre-trial defense motion to dismiss the case over alleged disclosure violations, finding that the defense had not been unfairly prejudiced. After a lunch break, the prosecution called Seth Kenney, who supplied dummies and guns to “Rust,” to testify about the bullet issue. Kenney denied providing live bullets to the set, as he had done in a previous trial involving Gutierrez Reed.
In a stunning development later that day, Judge Marlowe Sommer dismissed the case against Baldwin, citing misconduct by police and prosecutors over the withholding of evidence. Baldwin, visibly emotional, hugged his attorneys and his wife, Hilaria, before leaving the courthouse without speaking to the media.
“The late discovery of this evidence during trial has impeded the effective use of evidence in such a way that it has impacted the fundamental fairness of the proceedings,” Marlowe Sommer stated. “If this conduct does not rise to the level of bad faith, it certainly comes so near to bad faith to show signs of scorching.”
The dismissal marks the end of Baldwin’s criminal culpability in the nearly three-year saga. District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies expressed disappointment that the case did not reach the jury, stating, “Our goal from the beginning was to seek justice for Halyna Hutchins.”
Baldwin and other producers still face civil lawsuits from Hutchins’ family and crew members. Hutchins’ widower had previously settled his lawsuit, becoming an executive producer on the unfinished film. However, that settlement was reportedly in jeopardy before the trial. Brian Panish, the lawyer representing Hutchins’ parents and sister, stated, “We look forward to presenting all the evidence to a jury and holding Mr. Baldwin accountable for his actions in the senseless death of Halyna Hutchins.”
The independent Western film “Rust” was completed in Montana but has not yet found a distributor. Prosecutors did secure one conviction related to Hutchins’ death: Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the film’s armorer, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for involuntary manslaughter. She is appealing the conviction, and her attorney plans to file a motion to dismiss her case on the same basis as Baldwin’s.
The trial’s abrupt end came after only a few days of proceedings, with none of the eyewitnesses from the set having testified yet. Baldwin’s family members, who had been present in the courtroom, were informed that their service had ended.
Source: AP News, Variety
