Baldwin No Longer Charged in Rust Death

UPDATE Apr 22, 2023 5:30 AM CDT

In what the AP is calling "a stunning turnaround," prosecutors on Friday formally dismissed the involuntary manslaughter charge that Alec Baldwin had been facing in the death of the Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. That was the only remaining criminal charge against Baldwin in state District Court in Santa Fe, but the film's weapons supervisor Hannah Gutierrez-Reed still faces an involuntary manslaughter charge. Prosecutors have implied the investigation will continue, and said in a statement that the "decision does not absolve Mr. Baldwin of criminal culpability and charges may be refiled."

Apr 20, 2023 3:30 PM CDT

Special prosecutors in New Mexico plan to ask that the involuntary manslaughter charges against actor Alec Baldwin, over a fatal shooting on a movie set in 2021, be dismissed. Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis, who were recently named to their positions, then plan to launch their own investigation, Deadline reports. They want the two counts dropped without prejudice, allowing them to revive the counts later. The Santa Fe district attorney's office did not comment immediately Thursday on the decision.

But Baldwin's attorneys welcomed it, adding that "we encourage a proper investigation into the facts and circumstances of this tragic accident." Baldwin pleaded not guilty, as did Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the original armorer on the set of Rust, in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. It wasn't clear Thursday whether the same charge against Gutierrez-Reed would remain, per CNBC. The case was scheduled to go to trial in May, while filming was scheduled to resume this week in Montana. (More Alec Baldwin stories.)