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Santa Fe County district attorneyย Mary Carmack-Altwiesย announced thatย Alec Baldwinย and armorerย Hannah Gutierrez Reedย are beingย charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughterย in the shooting death of cinematographerย Halyna Hutchinsย on the set of the movieย Rustย on October 21, 2021.
Assistant directorย David Halls, who told Baldwin the gun was not loaded, agreed toย plead guilty to negligent use of a deadly weapon.
Baldwin was rehearsing a scene that involved drawing a revolver from his jacket. During the rehearsal, the gun fired, striking Hutchins in the chest and hitting directorย Joel Souzaย in the shoulder.
"After a thorough review of the evidence and the laws of the state of New Mexico, I have determined that there is sufficient evidence to file criminal charges against Alec Baldwin and other members of the 'Rust' film crew,"ย Carmack-Altwies said in a statement.
"On my watch, no one is above the law, and everyone deserves justice."
Carmack-Altwies said that special prosecutorย Andrea Reebย has been appointed to handle the case.
"If any one of these three peopleโAlec Baldwin, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, or David Hallsโhad done their job, Halyna Hutchins would be alive today. It's that simple," Reeb said in a statement. "The evidence clearly shows a pattern of criminal disregard for safety on the 'Rust' film set. In New Mexico, there is no room for film sets that don't take our state's commitment to gun safety and public safety seriously."
Alec Baldwinโs attorney Luke Nikas called the decision to press charges a "terrible miscarriage of justice."
โThis decision distorts Halyna Hutchinsโ tragic death and represents a terrible miscarriage of justice. Mr. Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun โ 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,โ Nikas said.