Alec Baldwin Trial Dismissed for voluntary manslaughter has been dismissed by Santa Fe Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer.
Arguing that they were not given an opportunity to investigate what could be crucial evidence—a collection of ammunition turned in around the time Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the armaments officer, was on trial for involuntary manslaughter, was filed in a last-minute motion to dismiss the case. Gutierrez-Reed is serving eighteen months right now.
That ammo found the core of Baldwin’s argument, as most of the evidence revolved on how live ammunition could have found its way onto Rust’s set. During an October 2021 movie rehearsal, the actor pointed a gun, which went off killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
Judge Sommer agreed that Baldwin’s team should have been given specifics on the extra ammo by the prosecution. It was sufficient to dismiss the matter with prejudice, so Baldwin cannot be brought before it once more.
Sommer noted this when rendering her decision this afternoon: “There is no way the court can right this wrong.” In the courtroom Baldwin and his family started crying. Since testimony started on Wednesday, his wife and siblings have been there for him.
The proof that closed the matter.
Troy Teske turned up a batch of ammunition to the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Office around Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s trial. At the time, he claimed that they were from the same batch as the live ammunition used on Rust’s set. Teske was an acquaintance of Gutierrez-Reed’s father, a well-known armorer called Thell Reed, according to Prosecutor Kari Morrissey. Morrissey stated she thought the rounds he brought were different from the deadly bullet that killed Hutchins as their case number differed.
Later on, Morrissey got onto the witness stand herself and said she didn’t believe the evidence would be pertinent for Baldwin’s prosecution.
Baldwin’s legal team discovered, nevertheless, a cover-up: possible material supporting Baldwin’s case was never given to them.
Judge Sommer said yes. “The state is highly culpable for its failure to provide the defendant this discovery,” the judge said.
The jury was dismissed earlier on Friday while the judge decided whether or not to move forward with the case.
Baldwin had been behind jail for up to eighteen months on involuntary manslaughter.