Alec Baldwin will see no further prosecution in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the Western movie "Rust" in 2021, thanks to a technicality.
The reason?
"Surprise bullets."
Let me explain.
Hutchins was killed after a live round fired from the prop gun Baldwin pointed at her. The "Rust" armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was sentenced to 18 months prison time for the event, as it was her job to ensure the safety of the weapons used.
Kari Morrissey, the lead prosecutor, was looking for a similar conviction for Baldwin for pulling the trigger, which the actor maintains he never did — a fact that cannot be ascertained as the weapon in question was conveniently destroyed by the FBI during testing.
The technicality that got Baldwin's case thrown out is also convenient on its face. The day that Gutierrez-Reed was convicted, a box of Colt-45 ammunition was delivered to the courthouse by a friend of Gutierrez-Reed's family to be submitted as evidence for her case.
There was no way for the prosecuting attorney to verify its relevance since there was no more gun, so it was filed but not given to Baldwin's defense attorney to examine. Somehow, the defense attorney found out about the delivery and accused the prosecution of withholding evidence.
So, in a highly unusual moment, the prosecutor called herself to the witness stand.
Morrissey then testified,
She said she did not believe the bullets had evidentiary value.
In a further bizarre twist, defense attorney Alex Spiro then cross-examined Morrissey, asking about repeated failures to turn over evidence leading up to the trial. He also asked if Morrissey was acting out of contempt for Baldwin.
‘That is absolutely untrue,' Morrissey said. ‘I actually really appreciate Mr. Baldwin's movies … I really appreciate his politics.'
The judge then ruled that there was just no other option than to dismiss the charges with prejudice, not a mistrial or anything like that. They were dismissed with prejudice, meaning the charges can never be brought again.
‘If this conduct does not rise to the level of bad faith, it certainly comes so near to bad faith as to show signs of scorching,' the judge said.
‘The state is highly culpable for its failure to provide discovery to the defendant. Dismissal with prejudice is warranted.'
There's no indication that the ammunition had anything to do with the case at all, though Gutierrez-Reed's lawyers are hoping to get her conviction overturned on similar grounds.
If you ask me, Alec Baldwin didn't seem to take his own trial seriously.
Can any non-celebrity just walk out in the middle of their manslaughter trial without major repercussions?
Probably not.
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