Prosecutors have dropped a key charge against Alec Baldwin that would have sentenced him to five years in prison for killing ‘Rust’ cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, gistpeople reports
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The Santa Fe County District Attorney’s Office has dropped a gun enhancement charge against the actor, which means that even if convicted of involuntary manslaughter, he may not spend any time in prison.
Last week, a lawyer for Baldwin filed a motion criticizing prosecutors for pursuing the actor under a law that did not apply to him.
The gun enhancement charge was initially added to his involuntary manslaughter charges, but the Santa Fe DA’s office confirmed that it was dropped on Friday.
The charge requires the person who used the gun to’brandish’ the weapon, which means the gun was displayed with the intent to intimidate or injure someone.
Baldwin was on set shooting for ‘Rust’ at the time of the shooting, so the charge is unlikely to meet New Mexico law.
A new amendment to the law, however, means that brandishing is no longer required, a change that occurred seven months after the fatal incident.
‘In order to avoid further litigious distractions by Mr. Baldwin and his attorneys, the District Attorney and the special prosecutor have removed the firearm enhancement to the involuntary manslaughter charges in the death of Halyna Hutchins on the ‘Rust’ film set,’ said the Santa Fe District Attorney in a statement.
‘The prosecution’s priority is to secure justice, not billable hours for big-city lawyers.’
The aggressive statement comes just days after Baldwin’s lawyers argued about the charge, citing the change in the law.
In January, Baldwin and ‘Rust’ armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed were both charged with involuntary manslaughter, citing a ‘criminal disregard for safety.’
They both had their enhanced charges dropped less than a month after they were brought.
Baldwin’s attorneys asked Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer to dismiss the enhancement violation entirely in a motion filed on February 10.
‘The prosecutors committed a basic legal error by charging Mr. Baldwin under a version of the firearm-enhancement statute that did not exist on the date of the accident,’ said his legal team, led by New York attorney Luke Nikas.
‘That version of the statute could not apply to conduct that occurred prior to its enactment,’ says the court.
It comes after it was revealed that Halyna’s husband will testify in court about her death from a bullet in the ‘prop’ gun.
Matthew Hutchins has been added to the New Mexico District Attorney’s witness list for the February 24 preliminary hearing.
