Alec Baldwin’s claim that he did not pull trigger may ‘come back to haunt him’: Roth
Attorney Richard Roth joins "Fox News Live" to provide analysis of actor Alec Baldwin as he faces charges for an accidental shooting on a movie set.
Alec Baldwin has been criminally charged for his involvement in the fatal "Rust" shooting that led to Halyna Hutchins' death.
Baldwin was formally charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter in the alternative Tuesday, according to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital.
"Rust" armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was also charged Tuesday. Prosecutors said previously that assistant director David Halls, who oversaw safety on set, has agreed to plead guilty in the negligent use of a deadly weapon. Prosecutors say Halls may have handled the gun improperly before it was given to Baldwin.
"Today we have taken another important step in securing justice for Halyna Hutchins," District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies said in a statement. "In New Mexico, no one is above the law, and justice will be served."
Alec Baldwin covers his face as he enters a building in New York City Jan. 20, 2023. This was the first time Alec Baldwin was seen since being charged with involuntary manslaughter following the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of "Rust" in 2021. (Dario Alequin for Fox News Digital)
Prosecutors laid out their case against Baldwin in specific detail in the probable cause documents released Tuesday.
"Baldwin's deviation from known standards, practice and protocol directly caused the fatal death of Hutchins," the documents state.
"By not receiving the required training on firearms, not checking the firearm with the armorer, letting the armorer leave the firearms in the church without being present, deviating from the practice of only accepting the firearm from the armorer, not dealing with the safety complaints on set and/or making sure safety meetings were held, putting his finger on the trigger of a real firearm when a replica or rubber gun should have been used, pointing the firearms at Hutchins and Souza, and the overall handling of the firearms in a negligent manner, Baldwin acted with willful disregard for the safety of others and in a manner which endangered other people, specifically Hutchins and Souza.
Alec Baldwin and District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altweis (Getty Images)
"Baldwin clearly should have known the danger of his actions which led to the death of Hutchins," it added.
According to the documents, Baldwin did not attend firearms training ahead of the filming for "Rust" and spent time "distracted" during a 30-minute session that was supposed to last for an "hour or more."
"Statements and evidence show Baldwin was not present for required firearms training prior to the commencement of filming," the documents allege. "Statements, depositions from OSHA and evidence show Baldwin was provided only minimal training on firearms, even after Reed requested more training for Baldwin. In the deposition taken from Reed, she stated Baldwin had very limited training on the cross draw that was required for the scene on the 21st and limited training in firearms and how to check his own firearm as to whether it was unloaded or loaded, in which Reed felt it was very important in his role as Rust.
"Whether guided by [Hutchins'] directions or not, Baldwin knew the first rule of gun safety is never point a gun at someone you don't intend on shooting."
"A training session for at least an hour or more in length was scheduled, but the actual training consisted of only approximately 30 minutes as, according to Reed, Baldwin was distracted and talking on his cell phone to his family during the training," the documents claim.
Prosecutors also brought up Baldwin's role as a producer on the film. "In his producer’s position, the evidence indicates Baldwin also did not act to address the lack of daily safety meetings that are required to be conducted by the 1st assistant director," the docs read.
The prosecution also called out Baldwin for directly pointing the firearm at Hutchins and Souza.
"Whether guided by [Hutchins'] directions or not, Baldwin knew the first rule of gun safety is never point a gun at someone you don't intend on shooting," the prosecution wrote. "In addition, always assume a gun is loaded. Had Baldwin performed the required safety checks with the armorer, Reed, this tragedy would not have occurred. In addition, if Baldwin had not pointed the gun at Hutchins and Souza, this tragedy would not have occurred."
Investigators also claimed Baldwin made "inconsistent" statements regarding the fatal incident.
"Baldwin approached responding deputies on the day of the shooting, wanting to talk to them because he was the one who ‘fired’ the gun. He was referred to and later interviewed by detective(s)," the documents read.
"Baldwin later asserted that he never fired the revolver, and that it had just ‘… gone off.’ Baldwin made this assertion public as well, in multiple media interviews conducted after the shooting. Many media interviews and law enforcement interviews were conducted by Baldwin, and he displayed very inconsistent accounts of what happened during the incident when firing the gun that killed Hutchins."
Six live rounds of ammunition were found on the set of "Rust," according to the documents.
"Evidence and statements indicate that aside from what Hannah Gutierrez-Reed (Armorer – Rust Production) may have brought to the set with her, all weapons and ammunition (blank, dummy) for the production were obtained from a supply company in Albuquerque, PDQ Arms and Prop, LLC," according to the documents.
However, investigators found that the live ammunition seized from the PDQ Arms and Prop business "did not match" the live ammunition found on the set of "Rust."
"These rounds were submitted to the FBI for comparison with the suspected live rounds found at the shooting scene," the documents said. "The ‘explosives chemistry’ examination of the rounds showed that the smokeless powder in the live rounds found at the scene did not match the live rounds seized from the props/arms supplier in question. This means the live rounds on ‘Rust’ did not match the rounds explosive chemistry taken from PDQ Arms and Prop."
Gutierrez-Reed's lawyer claimed the district attorney "completely misunderstood" the facts of the case in a statement to Fox News Digital:
"The filed probable cause statement reveals that the district attorney has completely misunderstood the facts and has reached the wrong conclusions. Hannah pleaded to provide more firearms training. She was denied and brushed aside. Hannah asked to be able to perform her armorer duties more for safety reasons. She was told by production to focus on props. Hannah asked Halls if they could use a plastic gun for the rehearsal scene, and he said no, wanting a ‘real gun.’
"Hannah asked to be called back into the church if Baldwin was going to use the gun at all, and Halls failed to do that. Yet the district attorney has given Halls a 6-month probation misdemeanor and charged Hannah and Baldwin with felony offenses carrying at least 5 years in prison.
Alec Baldwin and wife Hilaria have been married for 10 years. (Jason Mendez / File)
"The tragedy of this is had Hannah just been called back into the church by Halls, she would have performed the inspection and prevented this tragedy," the statement continued. "We will fight these charges and expect that a jury will find Hannah not guilty."
The New Mexico First Judicial District Attorney's Office first announced Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed would be charged earlier in January. The D.A. informed the public that, following the charges, Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed would be required to make a first appearance after receiving a summons, usually within a few days. The defendants can appear virtually.
The next step in the legal process should be held in the next two months. And if the case were to go to trial, it typically would begin in six months, according to a legal expert.
"We should expect that a preliminary hearing will be held within the next two months. At that hearing, a judge will determine whether a trial should move forward," Kate Mangels of Kinsella Weitzman Iser Kump Holley law firm told Fox News Digital. "If the judge determines that a trial should move forward, the dates for future hearings and trial will likely be set at that time."
"Defendants have the right to a speedy trial, and a trial should typically commence within six months. However, it is common for a defendant or defense attorney to ask for an extension or continuance, which would increase the time before trial would begin."
It appears Baldwin will not be taken into custody, and that's not uncommon, according to another legal expert.
Halyna Hutchins died on the set of "Rust" after a gun Alec Baldwin was holding fired. (Panish Shea Boyle Ravipudi LLP/File)
"If you know exactly where the defendant is, and he’s not generally a threat to society, then the defendant can be free on their own recognizance," Los Angeles criminal defense and appellate attorney Matthew Barhoma, founder of Barhoma Law, told Fox News Digital.
"Some of the conditions of release that could be placed on Baldwin include having to stay away from firearms and remaining clean and sober."
Shortly before the charges were formally filed, Baldwin's wife, Hilaria, shared a supportive message on Instagram.
"I hope you understand how much your support and kindness to Alec and our children mean," she wrote in the caption of a photo of the family. "Thank you for being our community and our village. You are helping us to be stronger parents and partners during this unimaginable time, stemming from such heartbreaking tragedy. Please know that I hear all of your outspoken words and each and every one of you reminds me daily that there is kindness in the world and we are not alone."
"Alec, we love you and we are here for you."
Hutchins died Oct. 21, 2021, after a gun Baldwin was holding fired on set. The director of "Rust," Joel Souza, was also injured in the shooting in a church on Bonanza Creek Ranch in New Mexico.
The Santa Fe County Sheriff's Department has spent the last year investigating how live rounds made it onto the movie set. Gutierrez-Reed and Halls were the only other crew members believed to have handled the gun that fired on set.
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Halls allegedly handed Baldwin a .45 revolver, telling him that it was "cold," or safe. Prior to that, Gutierrez-Reed spun the cylinder to show Halls what was in the gun, her lawyer said.
Baldwin has maintained that he did not pull the trigger of the gun — once during a primetime interview shortly following the deadly shooting and again on a podcast episode. The actor originally said he had pulled the hammer of the gun back as far as he could and released it but did not pull the trigger.
Baldwin's lawyer previously called the decision to charge the actor with involuntary manslaughter a "miscarriage of justice."
"This decision distorts Halyna Hutchins’ tragic death and represents a terrible miscarriage of justice," Luke Nikas of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan told Fox News Digital in a statement. "Mr. Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun — or anywhere on the movie set. He relied on the professionals with whom he worked, who assured him the gun did not have live rounds. We will fight these charges, and we will win."
Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed were "charged in the alternative." This means a jury will decide not only if the two are guilty but which definition of involuntary manslaughter their actions fall under.
Involuntary manslaughter is a Class D felony punishable by up to 18 months in jail and a $5,000 fine.
Alec Baldwin is shown on the "Rust" movie set in New Mexico. (Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office)
Baldwin's second count is involuntary manslaughter in the commission of a lawful act, which "requires proof that there was more than simple negligence involved in a death," according to the D.A.'s office. It is also punishable by up to 18 months in jail and a $5,000 fine.
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However, this charge includes a firearm enhancement. If convicted on the enhancement, Baldwin would face a mandatory five years in jail.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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