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Alec Baldwin urges judge to stand by dismissal of involuntary manslaughter case in 2021 “Rust” shooting
Alec Baldwin urged a New Mexico judge on Friday to stand by her decision to skuttle his trial and dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge against the actor in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie.
State District Court Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed the case against Baldwin halfway through a trial in July based on the withholding of evidence by police and prosecutors from the defense in the 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film “Rust.”
The charge against Baldwin was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it can’t be revived once any appeals of the decision are exhausted.
Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey recently asked the judge to reconsider, arguing that there were insufficient facts and that Baldwin’s due process rights had not been violated.
Baldwin, co-producer and lead actor in the film “Rust,” was pointing a revolver at Hutchins during a rehearsal in a small church on the movie set at Bonanza Creek Ranch when the gun went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer — but not the trigger — and the gun fired.
The case-ending evidence was ammunition that was brought into the sheriff’s office in March by a man who said it could be related to Hutchins’ killing. Prosecutors said they deemed the ammunition unrelated and unimportant, while Baldwin’s lawyers alleged that they “buried” it and filed a successful motion to dismiss the case.
In her decision to dismiss the Baldwin case, Marlowe Sommer described “egregious discovery violations constituting misconduct” by law enforcement and prosecutors, as well as false testimony about physical evidence by a witness during the trial.
Defense counsel says that prosecutors tried to establish a link between the live ammo on set and Gutierrez-Reed, to drive home the argument that Baldwin should have recognized the armorer’s blundering youth and inexperience.
“Baldwin was intitled to pursue the truth at trial, especially after he requested to see ‘all rounds, casings and deconstructed rounds’ in the state’s possession,” the new court filing by defense attorneys states. “Yet the state deliberately withheld the evidence that Baldwin had requested.”
“Rust” movie armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is serving an 18-month sentence on a conviction for involuntary manslaughter. She was accused of flouting standard safety protocols and missing multiple opportunities to detect forbidden live ammunition on set.
Assistant director and safety coordinator David Halls pleaded no contest to the negligent use of a deadly weapon and was sentenced to six months of unsupervised probation. A no contest plea isn’t an admission of guilt but is treated as such for sentencing purposes.
Lactaid, a brand of lactose-free dairy milk, has been recalled in 27 states by Massachusetts-based HP Hood LLC because the product may contain trace amounts of almonds that are not listed on the label, according to a recall issued by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration. Those with an allergy or severe sensitivity to almonds could run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reactions if the products are consumed, the FDA said.
The 96-ounce containers of Lactaid Milk were shipped to retailers and wholesalers from Sept. 5 to Sept. 18, and located in the following states: Alabama, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
The recall applies to a limited number of Lactaid Milk in plastic containers with the code 51-4109 P2 paired with specific “best by dates,” which can be found on the U.S. Food & Drug Administration website.
The issue was discovered as a result of “routine maintenance programs” which revealed the potential for the trace amounts of almond, the FDA said.
No illnesses have been reported.
Consumers who bought the product can return it to the retail location where the purchase was made for a full refund or exchange, or call Hood Consumer Affairs at 1-800-242-2423.
Information on recalls of our FDA-regulated products can be found here.
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A flight from Norway to Spain had to make an emergency landing in Denmark after a mouse scampered out of an in-flight meal that was served to a passenger.
The Scandinavian Airlines flight was traveling from Oslo, Norway to Malaga, Spain, CBS News partner BBC News reported.
Passenger Jarle Borrestad told the BBC that he was seated next to the woman whose food the mouse was in. As she opened the boxed meal, the mouse scurried out, he said.
He said he pulled his socks over his pant legs so that the mouse did not crawl up, but stressed that people stayed very calm and “were not stressed at all.”
Airline spokesperson Oystein Schmidt told AFP that the emergency landing in Copenhagen, Denmark was in line with company procedures, since mice and other rodents can pose a safety risk. Airlines usually have strict restrictions about rodents on board, since they can chew through electrical wiring, the BBC reported.
“This is something that happens extremely rarely,” Schmidt told the AFP.
Schmidt also said suppliers of in-flight meals will be reviewed “to ensure this does not happen again.”
Passengers were transferred to a different aircraft to resume their journey to Spain. Borrestad told the BBC that the delay added only a few hours to the trip.