(Santa Fe) Alec Baldwin made his first public comments to thank his supporters Saturday after the early and stunning end to his manslaughter trial.
“There are too many people who have supported me to thank them all at this time,” Mr. Baldwin wrote in a brief Instagram post accompanying a photo of himself sitting in a courtroom in Santa Fe, New Mexico. “To all of you, you will never know how much I appreciate your kindness to my family.”
A day earlier, the actor shed tears as Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed the case three days into the trial and said he could no longer be criminally prosecuted for the murder of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Neither he nor his attorneys spoke to reporters as he left the courthouse.
The evidence that sank the case was ammunition brought to the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office in March by a man who said it might be linked to M’s death.me Hutchins. Prosecutors said they considered the ammunition unrelated and unimportant, while Baldwin’s attorneys said it had been “buried” and filed a motion to dismiss the case.
The judge said the withholding of evidence had affected the “fundamental fairness” of the trial of Alex Baldwin, 66, who could have faced up to 18 months in prison if convicted.