Actor Alec Baldwin is asking for release in the ‘Rust’ manslaughter case, claiming prosecutors manipulated the jury trial in the case.
The 65-year-old and his lawyer Alex Spiro have filed new legal documents, seen by TMZwhere he asks to have his case dismissed.
Baldwin and Spiro allege the grand jury process was manipulated by the Santa Fe County District Attorney’s office, claiming they added seven biased witnesses.
The filing reportedly adds that three of the witnesses were on the district attorney’s payroll, two of them were from the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Office and one sued him in a civil case.
It is also alleged that the FBI tested the gun used in the fatal scene that killed Halyna Hutchins, and that the district attorney failed to present all evidence from the tests.
The 65-year-old and his attorney Alex Spiro have filed new legal documents, seen by TMZ, asking to have his case dismissed
Baldwin was originally charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death of Halyna Hutchins, but the charges were dropped in April last year before being charged last month.
The documents show that tests showed the revolver fired without the trigger being pulled when it was fully loaded, just as it did on the day of the tragedy.
During Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s trial earlier this year, Officer Bryce Ziegler said he had to break the gun with a hammer to get it to fire without using the trigger.
Ziegler, appearing for the prosecution, said this could not have happened on the set of Rust because the gun was in good condition when it arrived to him.
His analysis contradicts Baldwin’s claims that he only pulled back the hammer on the vintage-looking gun.
Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, 26, was Rust’s gunsmith and was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the shooting of cameraman Halyna Hutchins.
The verdict poses problems for Baldwin when he goes on trial for involuntary manslaughter in the same courthouse in July. If found guilty, he faces 18 months in prison.
Baldwin was originally charged with involuntary manslaughter, but the charges were dropped last April. He was dramatically charged again last month and pleaded not guilty.
The shooting took place in October 2021 after two weeks of filming while Baldwin was practicing unholstering his gun.
He opened fire on Hutchins, 42, a married mother of one whose son was nine at the time, and the bullet passed through her and lodged in the shoulder of director Joel Souza, who survived and testified in court.
The shooting took place in October 2021, after two weeks of filming, while Baldwin was practicing unholstering his gun.
Gutierrez-Reed was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and was also charged with tampering with evidence
The jury was shown shocking images of cameraman Halyna Hutchins’ blood-stained shirt
During Gutierrez-Reed’s trial, prosecutors painted a damning portrait of a film in a state of “hurried chaos.”
The night before the incident, six members of the camera crew quit due to safety concerns.
Gutierrez-Reed’s defense was to blame everyone but her, but especially Baldwin.
Her attorney, Jason Bowles, said Baldwin was the “big boss” on set who no one stood up to, even as he chased people and ignored security checks because Rust, of which he was a producer, had a tight budget.
The jury heard that Baldwin commissioned director Souza to write the script, to which he owned the rights. Baldwin was the lead actor in the film and also served as a producer.
Bowles called Gutierrez-Reed, who was just 24 at the time of the incident, a “scapegoat” for broader failings that led New Mexico’s safety regulator to fine the producers $136,000 for “deliberate and serious” safety failures .
Bowles told the court that Baldwin himself made the set unsafe by waving his gun at people like a ‘pointing stick’.
At Gutierrez-Reed’s trial, prosecutors painted a damning portrait of a film in a state of ‘hurried chaos’
Jurors were shown a video during the production of Rust of Baldwin pointing the gun at crew and cast members, including a 12-year-old boy, between scenes.
Jurors were told that Baldwin himself had made the set unsafe by waving his gun at people like a “pointing stick” and firing bullets after the director said a cut had been made.
A behind-the-scenes video of the shooting showed Baldwin demanding a second take immediately after a taping that had just ended.
He was heard saying: ‘Right away! Immediately! Let’s reload. Here we go, come on! We should have two guns, both of which can reload.”
When asked if this type of behavior was typical, Carpenter said no, adding that it put pressure on the gunmaker to stand up to him.
Moments later, after the director called cut, Baldwin let out another blank while standing next to the 12-year-old actor.
Carpenter said if someone yells “cut,” nothing else should be fired and that Baldwin “went off script.”
Baldwin could have used a Nerf gun in the scene where he accidentally shot Hutchins because it was just a rehearsal known as blocking, the jury heard.
But Baldwin insisted on using the real weapons, known as his “hero props,” because that’s what he preferred, just as he preferred the most powerful puppets possible because they were more realistic.
A firearms expert showed the jury a gun similar to the one Baldwin used to shoot Hutchins
Production of Rust abruptly stopped in October 2021 when a Baldwin prop gun fired a live bullet, killing Hutchins.
In his opening statement, Bowles said Baldwin “violated basic gun safety” by pointing the gun at Hutchins because he did not intend to shoot her.
He said, “The main thing here was hurry, get this thing so we can get the money and that’s all for production and Mr. Baldwin is one of the main producers. That’s up to them. Miss Gutierrez-Reed had no control over that.”
During Addiego’s cross-examination, Bowles asked, “Have you ever spoken out to Mr. Baldwin and said we’re not moving forward so quickly?”
Addiego said it was “not my job” and he didn’t remember “anyone standing up to Mr. Baldwin on the set of Rust.”
“He runs the show, he’s the big boss, right?” Bowles said. “He’s number one, so yeah,” Addiego said.
The criminal case is not the only legal action arising from Hutchins’ shooting.
In 2022, Baldwin settled a civil lawsuit filed against him by Matthew Hutchins, Hutchins’ widow, and the father of their son.
Under the terms, Rust continued production at a new location in Montana and Matthew Hutchins, who called his wife’s death a “terrible accident,” is executive producer. No date has yet been set for the film’s release.