(Headline USA) Alec Baldwin was charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter for the fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins on the set of Rust.
New Mexico First Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies announced the charges Thursday morning, more than a year after Hutchins’ death.
“Every person that handles a gun has a duty to make sure that if they’re going to handle that gun, point it at someone and pull the trigger that it is not going to fire a projectile and kill someone,” she said. “An actor does not get a free pass just because they are an actor. That is what is so important. We are saying here in New Mexico, that everyone is equal under the law.”
Carmack-Altwies said the investigation into the Rust shooting revealed there were live rounds mixed in with dummy rounds, and crews were not checking ammunition regularly. Baldwin had the responsibility to check his gun’s rounds, she said.
“He didn’t check it. He didn’t do any of things he was supposed to do to make sure that he was safe or that anyone around him was safe,” she said.
If Baldwin is convicted, he could face up to 18 months in prison.
In a statement, Baldwin’s attorney called the charges a “terrible miscarriage of justice.”
“This decision distorts Halyna Hutchins’ tragic death and represents a terrible miscarriage of justice,” Luke Nikas, Baldwin’s attorney, said. “Mr. Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun – or anywhere on the movie set. He relied on the professionals with whom he worked, who assured him the gun did not have live rounds. We will fight these charges, and we will win.”
Hutchin’s family thanked the district attorney and sheriff’s office after the charges were announced.
“We want to thank the Santa Fe Sheriff and the District Attorney for concluding their thorough investigation and determining that charges for involuntary manslaughter are warranted for the killing of Halyna Hutchins with conscious disregard for human life,” they said in a statement.
