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Topics: Alec Baldwin, Crime, Film and TV, US News
Kit Roberts
Topics: Alec Baldwin, Crime, Film and TV, US News
Actor Alec Baldwin has been officially indicted on a charge of involuntary manslaughter.
The charge is related to the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of Rust in 2021.
During filming, a prop gun that Baldwin was carrying went off and discharged a live round.
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Baldwin's attorneys, Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro, of Quinn Emanuel, said: "We look forward to our day in court."
A trial date has not been set.
If convicted, Baldwin could face up to 18 months in prison over the alleged offence.
Speaking in an interview with ABC in 2021, Baldwin said: “I feel that someone is responsible for what happened, and I can’t say who that is, but I know it’s not me."
The actor has consistently maintained that he did not pull the trigger on the gun, and that assistant director Dave Halls had declared the gun 'cold' and it did not have live ammunition.
Baldwin is not the only person who is facing a charge of involuntary manslaughter in relation to the tragic incident.
The movie's armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed has pleaded not guilty to a charge of involuntary manslaughter, with the trial set to being on February 21.
Baldwin's charge was announced on Friday (January 19) after a grand jury in New Mexico heard evidence from prosecutors Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis.
The indictment comes after a previous charge of involuntary manslaughter against Baldwin was dropped to 'conduct further investigation'.
A statement from the prosecutors at the time said: "Consequently, we cannot proceed under the current time constraints and on the facts and evidence turned over by law enforcement in its existing form.
"We therefore will be dismissing the involuntary manslaughter charges against Mr. Baldwin to conduct further investigation."
They added at the time that the dropping of the charges did not absolve Baldwin of any potential criminal responsibility, and that charges may be refiled, as has proved to be the case.
Baldwin has denied that he pulled the trigger, saying in a published clip: "Well, the trigger wasn't pulled. I didn't pull the trigger.
"No, no, no, I would never point a gun at anyone and pull the trigger at them. Never."
In October 2023 two sources told NBC that Baldwin and prosecutors had discussed a plea deal, however this was rescinded prior to their announcement that they intended to take the case before a grand jury.