Alec Baldwin A New Mexico judge ruled Monday that his role as a producer on the Western movie “Lust” is irrelevant to his manslaughter trial over a fatal shooting that occurred during filming.
The move, coming just as the trial was about to begin, is a major setback for the prosecution, who had planned to present evidence showing that as co-producer, Baldwin bore special responsibility for the dangerous situation that led to the shooting death of cinematographer Halina Hutchins during rehearsal, beyond that of an actor possessing a gun.
“The state is trying to show that as an actor, Mr. Baldwin made all these mistakes and caused Ms. Hutchins’ death because he failed to follow the guidelines as a producer, but I am very troubled by that position because as a producer he allowed these things to happen,” Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer said. “I reject the evidence that he was a producer.”
Special prosecutor Erlinda Ocampo Johnson unsuccessfully tried to bolster a case other than negligent use of a firearm by arguing that Baldwin was “fully aware” of his safety obligations as a producer. Prosecutors tried to link Baldwin’s actions on set to “a complete disregard or indifference to the safety of others.”
In court Monday, Mr. Baldwin sat between his lead lawyers, Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro. He appeared to listen intently, occasionally taking notes on a yellow legal pad or passing handwritten messages to his lawyers. Mr. Baldwin wore glasses and had short cropped hair.
trial The trial began with jury selection on Tuesday and is expected to last 10 days.
Last week, the judge cleared the way for the prosecution’s key firearms expert to testify about Baldwin’s handling of the revolver and whether the gun was in working order before the fatal shooting.
On Monday, the judge sided with the prosecution and excluded from the trial summary findings of a state workplace safety investigation that placed much of the blame on Deputy Warden Dave Holes, who has pleaded not guilty to negligent use of a firearm and could be called to testify at Baldwin’s trial.
Prosecutors say the workplace safety investigation was incomplete and unreliable and that Baldwin’s responsibility in the deadly shooting was downplayed.
This aerial photo shows the set of the film “Lust” at Bonanza Creek Ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Oct. 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
Last Movie Productions paid a $100,000 penalty to resolve what were described as “serious” but unintentional violations of state safety regulations under a 2023 settlement agreement. Several witnesses from the workplace safety investigation are likely to be called to testify at Baldwin’s trial.
Prosecutors also can present at trial, despite defense objections, graphic autopsy report images of Hutchins’ injuries, as well as police lapel camera footage from the moments after the shooting as medics arrived on the scene to treat the wounded Hutchins and Souza.
Baldwin is charged with one felony count of manslaughter, which carries a maximum sentence of 18 months in prison if convicted.
Hannah Gutierrez Reed, the armorer on set, was convicted of manslaughter She was sentenced to 18 months in prison for her role in Ms Hutchins’ death. She is appealing her conviction.
In October 2021, Baldwin was practicing cross-draw moves with a revolver when the gun went off, killing Hutchins and injuring manager Joel Souza.
In this image taken from a video released by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office, Alec Baldwin talks with investigators after the deadly shooting on a film set in Santa Fe, New Mexico (Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office, via The Associated Press, File)
Baldwin has pleaded not guilty and claims he accidentally fired the gun after being told to point it. Hutchins was behind the camera.Baldwin said he was unaware the gun contained live ammunition and pulled the hammer instead of the trigger, causing the gun to fire.
Baldwin’s lawyers successfully barred the trial from discussing fatal shootings on movie sets, including that of actor Brandon Lee, who was shot in the stomach and killed while filming “The Crow” in 1993. A bullet was accidentally left in the gun He shot Lee while filming a scene in which he was leaving a previous scene and using blank guns.
Prosecutors agreed not to elicit testimony about “The Crow,” but argue that Baldwin knew about the safety risks posed by guns even in the absence of live ammunition.
Marlowe Sommer said he would allow the fact that blank guns can be fatal to be mentioned only once in the trial — Baldwin’s lawyers have argued that live ammunition would never be brought onto a film set.
The judge sided with the prosecution and excluded from the trial a letter signed by crew members that disputed portrayals of the “Lust” set as chaotic or dangerous before the fatal shooting.
One more pretrial motion could ease the row between the prosecution and defense, with prosecutors asking the judge to block accusations of “prosecutorial misconduct” and “personal attacks.”
Marlow Sommer said arguments at trial about prosecutorial misconduct will be limited to testimony and expert analysis of the gun used in the fatal shooting and an FBI forensic test that damaged the firing mechanism, which the defense argues could have destroyed potentially exculpatory evidence.
The judge also ruled that evidence and arguments designed to generate sympathy for Baldwin, including his remorse and the impact the incident had on his family, were inadmissible at trial – arguments that prosecutors say were irrelevant to a guilty verdict.
Baldwin is Three-time Emmy Award winner He went from starring role to bit role to starring role, sometimes going years without a lead role in a hit movie or show, but his real-life personality as an outspoken liberal, talk show guest and champion “Saturday Night Live” host has kept him a household name for nearly 35 years.
