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9 months ago
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Over two years after the on-set shooting of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, Alec Baldwin could finally be going to trial for the fatal tragedy early this summer.
“So, what I’m going to do is I’m going to look at my schedule, and check the jury selection. I’m going to get going to see if we can’t compromise between the July trial dates and the June trial dates,” declared Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer today at a virtual hearing for the involuntary manslaughter case. “I’ll put that order out to you …Monday,” the New Mexico official added of a February 26 date.
Baldwin shot Hutchins on October 21, 2021 on the Indie Western’s Bonanza Creek Ranch set just outside Santa Fe after a gun he was holding during a rehearsal discharged a live round. Rust director Joel Souza was wounded in the shooting, but recovered soon afterwards.
Facing a series of civil suits as well as for a while charges in an earlier and then dismissed version of this case, Baldwin has insisted from almost Day One that he did not pull the trigger on the 1880s gun that killed Hutchins. Baldwin says the gun went off in his hand. Following a botched investigation by the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Office, the FBI and more recently independent weapons examiners brought aboard by the special prosecutors have taken a different point of view.
In separate reports, the bureau and the examiners say the gun could only have shot Hutchins and Souza if the trigger was pulled by Baldwin. Additionally, in violation of standard set safely procedures, Baldwin was pointing the gun right at the unshielded Hutchins when it fired during the rehearsal on the already troubled low budget film.
As of yet, no one, no lawyer, no suspect, has been able to provide a solid answer as to how live rounds got on the set of Rust.
First charged in January 2022 along with ex-Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, Baldwin saw the claims against him trimmed back and then dropped altogether in April that year. In what was a widely expected Grand Jury indictment and no small amount of timing drama Baldwin was charged anew on January 19 of this year.
That was one year to the day of the first charges.
At that time, Baldwin’s Quinn Emanuel attorney said they would seek a “speedy trial.” On January 31, Baldwin pushed the process along by entering a “not guilty’ plea at a virtual hearing. Baldwin is up against a prison sentence of 18 months to three years and around $5,000 in fines if found guilty.
Today, Baldwin lawyer Alex Spiro rejected the schedule put forth by Special Prosecutor Kerri Morrissey, who said she was not available in June due to other cases.
“There’s no reason why this case, given that its years ago now that this tragic accident happened, should not be prioritized given the complexity, media attention, promises made in determining funding and the other impossible trial schedules of other counsel,” Spiro stated on-camera, as fellow defense lawyer and Albuquerque attorney Heather LeBlanc looked on digitally.
“There are only so many cases we can try,” Morrissey said at the virtual hearing. “While I understand that Mr. Spiro is not available later, we are not available in June. We will accommodate this trial anytime in July, anytime in August, anytime in October.”
Tuesday’s hearing in the renewed Baldwin case comes one day before Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s trial is set to begin. Charged with involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence, the relatively inexperienced armorer is looking at up to three years behind bars if found guilty by a New Mexico jury. The trial is expected to last just over two weeks once jury selection is completed.
The short virtual session in Baldwin’s case Tuesday also comes as the Emmy-winning actor and wife Hilaria took to social media over the past day to very publicly celebrate meeting 13 years ago. Married since 2021, the couple have seven young children.
The Rust trials may have taken over two and a half years to begin, if they do. However, Rust the movie is a done deal after being brought back to life last April. Production relocated to the Yellowstone Film Ranch in Montana. Hutchins’ widower Matthew dropped hia wrongful-death suit against Baldwin and the film’s others producers and became a producer himself on Rust 2.0 as well as on a documentary about his wife. As one can imagine, Gutierrez-Reed was not invited to rejoin the resurrected film – which is still looking for a buyer, I hear.
