Unexpected decision about Alec Baldwin's involvement in Halyna Hutchins' death
On October 21, 2021, while filming the movie 'Rust', Alec Baldwin unintentionally shot and killed the film's director of photography, Halyna Hutchins.
Since then, the shooting led to a trail of accusations, lawsuits, trials, declarations, and, above all, a lack of peace and closure for the relatives of Halyna Hutchins and all the other people involved.
Having said that, the person who will have a bit more peace from now on, is Alec Baldwin. The New Mexico Prosecutor's Office has dropped all the charges against him for the death of Halyna Hutchins.
Baldwin, actor and producer of the film, was accused of two counts of involuntary manslaughter. He had been the person who fired the weapon that would end the life of the director of photography, even though he had no idea that there were real bullets in it.
While the case was ongoing, Alec Baldwin could face an 18-month jail term and a fine of $5,000.
The actor has defended his innocence in the case from the beginning, even though he was the one who shot. On top of that, he was the producer responsible for the whole project to begin with.
Alec Baldwin has always maintained the same version of events. He denies knowing that the weapon was loaded with live ammunition instead of blanks.
The actor's lawyers, Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro, have expressed their satisfaction with the decision and encouraged "a proper investigation into the facts and circumstances of this tragic accident," as reported by NBC News.
Along with Alec Baldwin, the person in charge of the security protocol during filming, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, was also accused of involuntary manslaughter.
For his part, the assistant director, David Halls, responsible for safely delivering the weapon to Alec Baldwin, reached an agreement with the Prosecutor's Office. He would be charged with a misdemeanor and sentenced to six months of unsupervised probation.
David Halls was the person who delivered the revolver, a Colt 45, to Alec Baldwin before the accidental firing. He was charged with negligent use of a firearm.
While this news about the case comes in, the filming of 'Rust' has also resumed. It was stopped for 18 months due to the accident.
The film's producer, Rust Move Productions, released a statement informing that they were returning to work and that they had changed the location of the set.
'Rust' will now finish its shoot at Yellowstone Film Ranch instead of in New Mexico, where it was initially being filmed.
Either way, before it changed locations, Rust Move Productions had to pay a fine of $ 100,000 to the New Mexico authorities. The fine was a punishment for security failures on set, Variety reports.
The company has also confirmed that Alec Baldwin will continue to work on the project, both as the protagonist and as co-producer. So, basically, for the actor little has changed.