Actor Alec Baldwin pleads not guilty to involuntary manslaughter

The American actor Alec Baldwin, presented in writing his not guilty plea before a court of New Mexicofor the charge of involuntary manslaughter charged against him by the death of a colleague, Halyna Hutchins on a set of the movie ”rust”, in 2021. The actor remains free on bail.

In the same document, the 65-year-old actor declined to formally appear before the court, so what was going to be the first hearing of the case initially scheduled for Thursday, February 1, will not be held. Producer and star of the cowboy film, Baldwin was charged last month with the fatal shooting.

Hutchins’ death shocked Hollywood, reviving past tragedies and prompting calls to ban firearms on film sets. However, some voices stressed that The industry is regulated by strict rules that were not followed in detail during the filming of “rust“.

The first accusation against Alec Bladwin

The actor had already been accused a year ago in the case, however, Prosecutors dropped the charges in April, arguing that “new facts” had emerged that called for “further investigation and forensic analysis.”.

After the first accusation, Baldwin pleaded not guilty and He maintained in repeated interviews that he did not activate the weapon.

Baldwin was brandishing a Colt .45 weapon during rehearsals on October 21, 2021 at the Bonanza Creek ranch, near Santa Fe, when a shot was fired, fatally hitting cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounding the production director. Joel Souza.

However, forensic experts hired by the prosecution concluded that Baldwin had to apply some pressure on the trigger for the gun to fire.

New accusation and possible arrest

Last month, a grand jury found probable cause against Baldwin, either due to negligent use of a firearm, or due to lack of caution, which led to the new accusation. In the United States, a grand jury is a group of citizens convened to evaluate the evidence and decide whether there is enough evidence to justify putting someone on trial.

If convicted, Baldwin could face up to 18 months in prison.

The actor’s lawyers, Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro, asked the court for a “speedy trial” in the interest of “minimizing public vilification and suspicion and avoiding the risks to proving his innocence that often arise after a long delay in prosecution.” “.

The charge against Baldwin focuses on his role as an actor, and not as a producer. Actors from the powerful American union SAG-AFTRA criticized the accusation, calling it “an incorrect assessment of an actor’s duties.”

“The job of an actor is not to be an expert in firearms”said the union. “In a set, firearms are arranged under the guidance of several expert professionals who are directly responsible for their careful and safe handling,” they added.

The tape armory, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was also charged with involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence in Hutchins’ death. According to the investigations, Gutierrez-Reed, in charge of the props, I would have placed a real bullet in the weapon that Baldwin had to handle and that he had to load only fake ammunition. The young woman, whose trial is scheduled for February, pleaded not guilty. It has not been clarified how the real bullets reached the film set.

The first assistant director, David Hallswho put the gun in Baldwin’s hands on the day of the tragedy, pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor weapons charge and was sentenced to six months of probation in March of last year.

After a pause due to tragedy, Filming of the film concluded last year in Montana under the reins of Souza, and with Matthew Hutchins, widower of the director of photographyas executive producer.

The director said at the time that the film’s culmination was “bittersweet” but that the cast and crew were “committed” to completing what he and Halyna had started.