Grand jury in New Mexico charged the actor for a shooting on Rust set that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins

Grand jury in New Mexico charged the actor for a shooting on Rust set that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins

Actor Alec Baldwin is facing a new involuntary manslaughter charge over the 2021 fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of the movie Rust.

A Santa Fe, New Mexico, grand jury indicted Baldwin on Friday, months after prosecutors had dismissed the same criminal charge against him.

During an October 2021 rehearsal on the set of Rust, a western drama, Baldwin was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins when it went off, fatally striking her and wounding Joel Souza, the film’s director.

Baldwin, a co-producer and star of the film, has said he did not pull the trigger, but pulled back the hammer of the gun before it fired.

Last April, special prosecutors dismissed the involuntary manslaughter charge against Baldwin, saying the firearm might have been modified prior to the shooting and malfunctioned and that forensic analysis was warranted. But in August, prosecutors said they were considering re-filing the charges after a new analysis of the weapon was completed.

  • @rottingleaf@lemmy.zip
    -1•11 months ago

    There are a lot of statements quoted. What I quoted was what I remembered reading. Anyway, the fact of what he actually did that was criminal is not being contested by anyone here, it’s that it was criminal, as if responsibility for any action at all can be offloaded via documents signed. That’d be false.

    • chaogomu
      2•11 months ago

      Except that Baldwin really didn’t do anything criminal, despite what you say.

      There are a lot of court cases about this out of California and Georgia. Liability for the death is squarely on the armorer.

      Unfortunately, this happened in a Trump friendly state, and the prosecutor wants to make a name for themselves by sticking it to the guy who made fun of Trump.

      • @rottingleaf@lemmy.zip
        0•11 months ago

        Saying “bang” and waving a gun is what I call “criminal stupidity”.

        and the prosecutor wants to make a name for themselves by sticking it to the guy who made fun of Trump.

        Everybody and their dog made fun of Trump.

        • chaogomu
          1•11 months ago

          Except he wasn’t just waiving the gun around.

          He’s an actor, and he was practicing the movements necessary for the scene.

          It’s called rehearsal. It’s normal.

          He said bang, because that would have been the end of the scene. Man points a gun at the camera, says his lines, and then pulls the trigger.

          You’ve seen that exact scene in dozens of films and TV shows.