SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Prosecutors in New Mexico will not appeal a state court’s decision to dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge against Alec Baldwin in the fatal shooting of a cameraman on the set of a Western movie , the Santa Fe district attorney’s office announced Monday.
Special Prosecutor Kari Morrissey has withdrawn the appeal of a July trial decision to dismiss charges against Baldwin in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during an on-set rehearsal for the film “Rust” outside Santa Fe in October 2021.
“Today’s decision to deny the appeal is the final vindication of what Alec Baldwin and his attorneys have said from the beginning: this was an unspeakable tragedy, but Alec Baldwin committed no crime,” said attorneys Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro . “The rule of law remains intact in New Mexico.”
Representatives of the attorney general could not immediately be reached.
The decision to withdraw the appeal reinforces Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer’s mid-trial decision to dismiss the case based on allegations that police and prosecutors withheld evidence from the defense.
Baldwin’s trial was marred by revelations that ammunition was brought into the Santa Fe County sheriff’s office in March by a man who said it could be linked to Hutchins’ killing. Prosecutors said they considered the ammunition unrelated and unimportant, while Baldwin’s attorneys say investigators “buried” the evidence in a separate file and filed a successful motion to dismiss.
The district attorney’s office said that under state law, the New Mexico attorney general would have transferred the appeal but “did not intend to exhaustively pursue the appeal on behalf of the plaintiff.”
“As a result, the state’s efforts to continue litigating the case in a fair and comprehensive manner have encountered multiple barriers that have compromised its ability to prosecute to the fullest extent of the law,” local prosecutors said.
Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer of “Rust,” was points a gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal on set when the revolver went off, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer — but not the trigger — and the revolver fired.
In April, a judge convicted the movie weapons supervisor Hannah Gutierrez-Reed up to a year and a half in state prison on an involuntary manslaughter conviction in Hutchins’ death.
Prosecutors accused Gutierrez-Reed of unknowingly bringing live ammunition onto the set of “Rust,” where it was expressly prohibited, and of failing to follow basic gun safety protocols.
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Deputy Director and Safety Coordinator David Halls pleaded no contest to negligent use of a deadly weapon and was sentenced to six months of unsupervised probation. A no contest plea is not an admission of guilt, but is treated as such for sentencing purposes.
Several civil lawsuits have been filed against Baldwin and “Rust” producers, including a complaint from Hutchins’ parents and sister.
Prosecutors say Hutchins’ death led to an industry-wide investigation into safety protocols, particularly the use of firearms and live ammunition on set.