As Alec Baldwin’s July trial for involuntary manslaughter approaches, the actor’s legal team is seeking to have his case dismissed. Legal expert Emily D. Baker, a lawyer and former L.A. Deputy District Attorney, explains that it is “unlikely” for grand jury indictments to be dismissed, as the prosecution has wide latitude in conducting a grand jury. However, Baldwin, who was indicted in January for his role in the accidental shooting death of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the New Mexico set of the Western movie in 2021, could find some hope in one of the arguments his legal team made in their March 14 motion.
Baker points out that the strongest argument from Baldwin’s legal team is that the state did not present the instructions to the grand jury accurately. Such errors can potentially get things overturned. Baldwin’s lawyers claim that special prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey gave “prejudicial” instructions to the grand jury. They argue that Morrissey included language that was previously deemed improper by the court, which could warrant the indictment being thrown out.
In their April 5 response, Morrissey and fellow special prosecutor Jason J. Lewis called the claims from Baldwin’s lawyers “patently false.” They stated that they did not deviate from uniform jury instructions and filled in the required language in accordance with the instruction and the facts presented to the jury. Baldwin’s team has the opportunity to file a reply to the prosecution’s response, after which Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer could make a decision based on the filings or schedule a hearing to allow attorneys for both sides to argue their points.
Even if Baldwin’s attorneys are unsuccessful in their motion to have the case dismissed, Baker notes that the process is somewhat of a win for Baldwin. He has a large legal team compared to the special prosecutors, who are also dealing with the case work in the Hannah Gutierrez-Reed case. Gutierrez-Reed, the Rust armorer, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for involuntary manslaughter in March. She was in charge of the weapons on the set and was found guilty of negligently loading a live bullet into Baldwin’s gun, causing the death of Hutchins.
Gutierrez-Reed’s lawyers argued that a new state supreme court decision should free their client, but a Santa Fe judge disagreed. Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer decided that Gutierrez-Reed will stay in jail while her lawyers appeal her involuntary manslaughter conviction. The judge stated that there was a death that the jury determined was caused by her, so she would not be released.
Gutierrez-Reed’s attorneys cited a New Mexico Supreme Court ruling in another case, State v. Taylor, in which the court overturned a conviction because the instructions to a jury were too confusing. The confusion stemmed from “and/or” language in the instructions. Some of the language in Gutierrez-Reed’s case included “and/or” language, but prosecutors argued that the cases were too different, and the judge agreed.
Gutierrez-Reed’s attorneys expect to file a more wide-ranging appeal in the future, hinging on other instructions given to the jury and an instance where a key witness allegedly saw privileged text messages between attorney and client. They argue that the recent state Supreme Court opinion will almost certainly lead to her conviction being overturned. The defense contends that the “and/or” conjunction allowed the jurors to convict even if they were not unanimous on either act.
Baldwin’s lawyers have filed a separate challenge to the jury instructions that were used to indict him for involuntary manslaughter. They are seeking to throw out the indictment for a series of alleged prosecutorial abuses. His trial is scheduled for July.
The legal battles surrounding the Rust shooting incident continue to unfold, with both Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed’s legal teams fighting to overturn their respective charges. The outcome of these cases will have significant implications for the individuals involved and the broader film industry.
Source: Variety, People
