(Los Angeles) The prosecutors investigating the responsibility of Alec Baldwin in a fatal shooting on a set in 2021 gave up Monday to prosecute the actor for an aggravating circumstance targeting him.
On October 21, 2021, the shooting of the film Rust on a ranch in New Mexico, a state in the southwestern United States, had turned tragic when Mr. Baldwin had activated a weapon supposed to contain only blank bullets, but whose very real projectile had killed the director of photography Halyna Hutchins, 42, and injured director Joel Souza.
Alec Baldwin is being prosecuted in New Mexico for manslaughter and faces an 18-month prison sentence, just like the film’s armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed.
The 64-year-old actor was also targeted by an aggravating circumstance – due to the use of a firearm – which made him face five years behind bars.
This aggravating circumstance had however been disputed by his lawyers, on the grounds that it was based on a New Mexico law which was not in force at the time of the tragedy. It was finally dropped by the prosecutors, “in order to avoid wasting time” according to them.
Alec Baldwin is also the subject of a civil complaint from the Ukrainian parents and the victim’s sister, the family’s lawyer announced on Thursday.
Alec Baldwin, known in particular for his role in the series 30Rock, has always claimed his innocence. According to him, he was assured that his weapon was harmless, and he denies having pulled the trigger. An assertion questioned by many experts.
This rare news item had shocked Hollywood and had a strong impact, triggering calls to ban firearms on the sets, where the presence of live ammunition is in theory already prohibited.