Fatal shot on set
Trial dismissed: Baldwin bursts into tears
The ongoing trial against Alec Baldwin for the involuntary manslaughter of a camerawoman has been surprisingly discontinued. Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer complied with the request of the Hollywood star's lawyers on Friday (local time). The actor reacted emotionally.
The defense attorneys had accused the public prosecutor's office in Santa Fe (New Mexico) of misconduct. The judge justified the decision by stating that evidence had been deliberately withheld from the defense.
Baldwin burst into tears in the courtroom. Emotional scenes ensued. The actor hugged his lawyers and his wife, Hilaria Baldwin, who was also sitting in the courtroom. A short time later, he left the building a free man.
Baldwin is accused of involuntary manslaughter
The trial, which has been running since Tuesday, was about the question of whether the 66-year-old actor was negligent in the fatal shooting of a camerawoman on the film set of the 2021 western "Rust" and must therefore go to prison.
Lead actor Baldwin had drawn a revolver during rehearsals, as requested by the director. But instead of harmless blanks, live ammunition was released. A bullet hit camerawoman Halyna Hutchins (42) and fatally injured her. Director Joel Souza was injured by the same bullet. If found guilty, Baldwin faced up to 18 months in prison.
Evidence was withheld
Baldwin's defense lawyers are now claiming that the public prosecutor's office withheld important evidence from them. The case concerns a series of cartridges that appeared a few months ago and were presented to the court in an envelope by the judge on Friday.
In the view of the defense attorneys, the cartridges should have been part of the ballistics investigation earlier in the proceedings - but the prosecution had withheld them, the "New York Times" explained the argumentation of Baldwin's attorneys. It was a significant procedural error on the part of the state not to make possible new evidence available to the defense.
Baldwin does not want to have pulled the trigger
The attorneys claimed the cartridges were evidence that the bullet that killed Hutchins came from Seth Kenney, the movie's prop supplier. Kenney denied supplying live ammunition for the production and was not charged in the case. He had been expected to testify against Baldwin.
The 66-year-old Baldwin repeatedly emphasizes his innocence and maintains that he did not pull the trigger of the gun.
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