Alec Baldwin filed a lawsuit Thursday accusing New Mexico prosecutors and law enforcement officials of conducting a “malicious prosecution” against him following the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the “Rust” film set.
His involuntary manslaughter case against Mr. Baldwin in the shooting death of cinematographer Halina Hutchins ended dramatically at a hearing in Santa Fe, N.M., in July. The judge found that the state had hidden evidence from the defense, and dismissed the case. A case that is unlikely to be tried again.
Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed the case, saying, “There is no way for the court to right this mistake,” as Mr. Baldwin cried in the courtroom.
Mr. Baldwin’s lawsuit, filed in the First Judicial District Court of New Mexico, accuses prosecutors of violating his constitutional rights through “improper use of the criminal process.” His lawyers accused prosecutors of a series of violations, claiming they had failed to disclose evidence to the defense on several occasions, had pursued the case to promote their “personal agendas or professional ambitions”. And had failed to pursue all lines of investigation. Because they tried to “build” a case against Mr. Baldwin.
“The defendants must now be held accountable for their malicious and unlawful pursuit of Baldwin,” the lawsuit says. “While no verdict in this civil case can mitigate the blow that the threat of state punishment and imprisonment has delivered, Alec Baldwin calls for the defendants to be held accountable for their egregious violations of the laws governing their work. This action has been filed.”
In response to the lawsuit, Special Prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey, who is overseeing the case, said in a statement: “In October 2023, the prosecution team learned that Mr. Baldwin intended to file a retaliatory civil lawsuit. We look forward to our day in court.”
Other prosecutors named in the lawsuit who prosecuted the case at various stages did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Prosecutors have long argued that criminal charges against Mr. Baldwin were justified, saying he behaved recklessly on the set that led to Ms. Hutchins’ death.
“This has always been about seeking justice for Halina Hutchins,” Ms Morrissey said in a statement last month.
Mr. Baldwin was holding an old-fashioned revolver in front of the camera when the shooting occurred on October 21, 2021. Mr Baldwin was told that the gun was “cold”, meaning it should not contain any live ammunition. But when they practiced firing the gun, a live bullet went off, killing Ms Hutchins and injuring the film’s director Joel Souza.
Mr. Baldwin has denied responsibility from the beginning, noting that there should have been no live ammunition on the set and insisting that he had not pulled the trigger on the ancient-style revolver before it went off. The gunman who loaded ammunition into the gun that day, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and is serving an 18-month prison sentence.
Mr. Baldwin’s lawsuit – which was filed by his lawyers Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro – takes issue with nearly every turn of the ongoing criminal case against him, including how it was initially led by local Mary Carmack-Altweis. How did the prosecution team handle it? District Attorney.
Ms. Carmack-Altweis’s team originally said that if Mr. Baldwin was convicted of a version of the murder charge, he would face a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison, and then Mr. After being explained by the lawyers, it was reduced to a maximum sentence of 18 months. They charged him with misdemeanor assault under a law that wasn’t passed until months after the fatal shooting.
The lawsuit says that a special prosecutor who was initially selected to handle the case, Andrea Reeb, suggested that the case could help her campaign for the state legislature. “I would like to at least let you know that I am supporting you… because it may help my campaign,” she wrote in an email to Ms. Carmack-Altweis.
Ms. Reeb, who has said she was joking in the email, resigned from the case after Mr. Baldwin’s lawyers argued that his working simultaneously for two branches of state government – as a lawmaker and as a prosecutor. Acting as – is a violation of the New Mexico Constitution.
Ms. Carmack-Altweis, Ms. Reeb and Ms. Morrissey are all named as defendants in the actor’s lawsuit, as well as officials with the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office, which handled the initial investigation of the shooting, and the county commissioners. Board. For the trial to proceed, Mr. Baldwin’s lawyers must convince the court that the defendants have not been protected State law that establishes immunity For public officials who are prosecuted on the basis of conduct within the scope of their jobs.
Representatives of the sheriff’s office and Santa Fe County declined to comment.
Taking aim at the “Rust” prosecution, Mr Baldwin’s lawyers questioned their motivation for pursuing the case against him. he shed light NBC News report from 2023 Citing “a source familiar with the case,” she reported, “Special prosecutors have held discussions in which they said they hope the trial will ‘humble’ Baldwin.”
Ms Morrissey wrote in court papers in 2023 that the case against Mr Baldwin was not being prosecuted because of his “impressive level of arrogance or to teach him a lesson”, but rather, because of a “full and detailed investigation”. .
When Ms Morrissey revived the case she argued that Mr Baldwin had failed to follow industry safety protocols regarding guns and that he should have investigated to ensure that Ms Gutierrez-Reid had loaded the revolver with dummy rounds. which are used to resemble real ammunition in the films. He said the forensic evidence undermines Mr Baldwin’s claim that he did not pull the trigger.
“Mr. Baldwin had a duty as a gun operator in the State of New Mexico under New Mexico laws to confirm that the gun contained only inert ammunition before firing a gun at a person, cocking it and pulling the trigger. Was gone,” Ms Morrissey wrote in court papers ahead of trial.
SAG-AFTRA, the union representing actors, disputed this, saying that firearms professionals are responsible for checking guns on set, not actors.
Ms. Morrissey has denied that exculpatory evidence that would have stalled the trial — a tranche of ammunition delivered to local law enforcement in March — was intentionally withheld from Mr. Baldwin’s lawyers. She initially indicated her intention to appeal the judge’s decision to dismiss the case, but withdrew after the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office, which oversees criminal appeals, declined to support the effort. The appeal was withdrawn last month.
Mr. Baldwin’s lawsuit claims he is entitled to monetary damages caused by “legal expenses, loss of income, severe emotional distress, mental anguish and embarrassment.”
Although Mr. Baldwin is no longer facing criminal charges for the shooting, he still faces lawsuits, including from Ms. Hutchins’ relatives and “Rust” crew members.