Halyna Hutchins’ husband is still seeking justice for his late wife’s on-set death after the case against “Rust” actor and producer Alec Baldwin was thrown out on Friday.
Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed the manslaughter charges after evidence emerged that police and prosecutors deliberately withheld live bullets from the defense, which were ostensibly relevant to the case (because the case was dismissed with prejudice, it cannot be re-tried).
“We respect the court’s decision. We look forward to presenting all the evidence to a jury and holding Mr. Baldwin accountable for his actions in the senseless death of Halyna Hutchins,” Brian J. Panish, an attorney for Matthew Hutchins, said in a statement to TheWrap on Friday.
“The late discovery of this evidence during trial has impeded the effective use of evidence in such a way that it has impacted the fundamental fairness of the proceedings. The defense is not in a position to test the state’s theory as to the source of the live rounds that killed Ms. Hutchins,” Judge Sommer ruled. “The state is highly culpable for its failure to provide this discovery to the defendant. The state unilaterally withheld the supplemental report. [The] Santa Fe County Sheriff’s officer made the decision — and apparently also with the prosecutor, as pursuant to [Cpl. Alexandria] Hancock’s testimony — that the evidence was of no evidentiary value and failed to connect the evidence to the case.”
“Ms. [Kari] Morrissey was aware of the new evidence and yet did not make an effort to disclose it to defense. The state’s willful withholding of this information was intentional and deliberate. If this conduct does rise to the level of bad faith, it certainly comes so near to bad faith as to show signs of scorching,” she continued. “The state’s discovery violation has injected a needless incurable delay into the jury trial. Dismissal with prejudice is warranted to ensure the integrity of the judicial system and the efficient administration of justice. Your motion to dismiss with prejudice is granted.”
Following the cinematographer’s tragic death on Oct. 21, 2021, the shooting has resulted in numerous legal proceedings with the film’s production companies, armorer and Baldwin; both civil and criminal.
Hutchins’ family previously settled a wrongful death suit in October 2022 before filing another suit in February 2023. The cinematographer’s widower Matthew Hutchins received an executive producer credit on the project in the initial settlements. In June, the family filed another civil suit against Baldwin for playing “Russian Roulette with a loaded gun.”
Meanwhile, armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is currently serving 18 months in prison for her role in Hutchins’ death.
“You alone turned a safe weapon into a lethal weapon,” the judge ruled in April. “But for you, Ms. Hutchins would be alive. A husband would have his partner, and a little boy would have his mother.”
Baldwin’s team did not respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.
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