In a stunning development, the involuntary manslaughter trial against Alec Baldwin has been dismissed by a New Mexico judge.
The decision came after defense attorneys argued that prosecutors had hidden evidence about the ammunition involved in the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the movie “Rust” in 2021. The dismissal is with prejudice, meaning Baldwin cannot be retried for the same charges. This surprising turn of events marks a significant development in the high-profile case.
Mr. Baldwin had faced up to 18 months in prison if he had been convicted. “There is no way for the court to right this wrong,” Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer said in court as Alec Baldwin wept.
In a scene reminiscent of the classic courtroom drama, Perry Mason, the dismissal followed a dramatic scene when a manila envelope of previously unexamined evidence was brought into the courtroom. Judge Marlowe Sommer then put on blue latex gloves, cut it open with a pair of scissors and got down from the bench to examine the ammunition inside in the well of the courtroom.
Lawyers for Baldwin accused the state of failing to disclose that it had been given a set of rounds said to be connected to the case when the defense asked to review all the ballistic evidence.
“They buried it,” Luke Nikas, a lawyer for Mr. Baldwin, said in court on the third day of the trial. “They put it under a different case with a different number.”
The failure to share the new evidence violated a legal requirement to turn over key evidence like this to the defense.
Alec Baldwin’s legal team had filed for dismissal on the grounds that critical evidence, specifically live rounds linked to the incident, was concealed by the police. This was confirmed by th eevents that unfolded, leading to the dismissal.
