Prosecutors withdraw appeal of dismissed case against Alec Baldwin in fatal shooting on set

Prosecutors in New Mexico will not appeal a court’s decision to dismiss a manslaughter charge against actor Alec Baldwin in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie, the Santa Fe District Attorney’s office said Monday.

Special prosecutor Carrie Morrissey withdrew an appeal of a July decision at trial to dismiss charges against Baldwin in the death of cinematographer Halina Hutchins during a rehearsal on the film’s set Rust out of Santa Fe in October 2021.

“Today’s decision to dismiss the appeal is the final vindication of what Alec Baldwin and his attorneys have said from the beginning – this was an unspeakable tragedy, but Alec Baldwin committed no crime,” said defense attorneys Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro. “The rule of law remains intact in New Mexico.”

Representatives for the state attorney general could not immediately be reached for comment.

The decision to withdraw the appeal upholds a decision by Judge Mary Marlow Sommer midway through Baldwin’s trial, which dismissed the case amid allegations that police and prosecutors withheld evidence from the defense.

WATCH | Alec Baldwin was brought to tears when the charges were dismissed by the judge:

Alec Baldwin wept when the judge dismissed the charges against him in Rust’s murder

Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed manslaughter charges against actor Alec Baldwin in New Mexico. His attorneys accused Santa Fe law enforcement of hiding evidence about the source of the live round that killed cameraman Halina Hutchins in 2021 by failing to identify the rounds in Rust’s investigative file or inform defense attorneys of their existence.

Baldwin’s trial was overturned by revelations that ammunition was brought into the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office in March by a man who said it might be related to Hutchins’ murder.

Prosecutors said they considered the ammunition unrelated and unimportant, while Baldwin’s lawyers said investigators “buried” the evidence in a separate case file and successfully filed a motion to dismiss.

The district attorney’s office said that under state law, the New Mexico attorney general would have dismissed the complaint but “does not intend to pursue the complaint exhaustively on behalf of the prosecution.”

“As a result, the state’s efforts to continue prosecuting the case in a fair and comprehensive manner encountered numerous obstacles that compromised its ability to prosecute to the full extent of the law,” local prosecutors said.

Baldwin is facing several lawsuits

Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer of Rustpointed a gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal on the set when the revolver went off, killing Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza. Baldwin said he pulled back the hammer — but not the trigger — and the revolver fired.

In April, a judge sentenced film gun operator Hannah Gutierrez-Reid to a maximum of a year and a half in state prison on a manslaughter conviction in Hutchins’ death.

Prosecutors accused Gutierrez-Reed of unknowingly bringing live ammunition onto the set of Rustwhere expressly prohibited, and for failure to follow basic gun safety protocols.

Assistant Principal and Safety Coordinator David Halls pleaded no contest to negligent use of a deadly weapon and was sentenced to six months of unsupervised probation. A no contest plea is not an admission of guilt but is treated as such for sentencing purposes.

Several civil suits were filed against Baldwin and Rust producers, including a complaint from Hutchins’ parents and sister.

Prosecutors said Hutchins’ death prompted an industry-wide scrutiny of safety protocols, particularly the use of firearms and live ammunition on set.