The confrontation between the prosecution and the actor’s defense promises to be lively, with the trial based on an investigation marked by numerous weaknesses and twists and turns.
Alec Baldwin’s manslaughter trial is set to get to the heart of the matter Wednesday in Santa Fe with the opening of proceedings on the fatal shooting of the Western’s cinematographer. RustThe 66-year-old American comedian risks up to 18 months in prison for these facts which date back to October 2021, on a ranch in New Mexico, where Santa Fe is located (southwest of the United States).
The star had brandished a gun that was supposed to hold only blanks, but instead fired a real projectile, killing Halyna Hutchins, the film’s director of photography, and wounding the director, Joel Souza. The confrontation between the prosecution and the defense promises to be lively, because the trial is based on an investigation marked by many weaknesses and twists. The actor has always explained that he was assured that the weapon was harmless and denies having pulled the trigger. His lawyers have filed numerous appeals to try to drop the charges, to no avail.
Read alsoDeadly Rust Movie Shooting: Alec Baldwin ‘Blatantly Lied’, Prosecutors Say
But their tenacity has for many months sown doubt in the ranks of the prosecution. They first obtained a change of prosecutor, then a dropping of the charges last year, before the actor was finally indicted again last January. For the defense, Alec Baldwin is a Hollywood star on whom prosecutors are trying to make a name for themselves, in a case followed by the media around the world.
The investigation has never established how live ammunition – which is in principle prohibited – ended up on the set. And the actor’s lawyers are quick to point out that an actor is not responsible for checking weapons or logistics. But the prosecution plans to paint the portrait of an unbearable actor, whose diva-like behavior and disregard for basic safety rules put the entire film crew in danger. “Mr. Baldwin’s pressure on the crew on the set regularly compromised safety,” prosecutors summarized in court documents, denouncing a comedian who “screamed regularly” on everyone and wanted to finish the movie faster.
Disputed expertise
The prosecution also believes that the actor “lied shamelessly” by changing his version of events after his first interrogation. It considers the hypothesis of an accidental shot, at the heart of its line of defense, “absurd.” An FBI expert report concluded that the gun could not have fired without the trigger being pulled. But the defense disputes this, because the federal police damaged certain parts of the weapon while conducting tests to explore the possibility of an accidental shot. The star’s lawyers even made this a central argument in an attempt to have the trial overturned.
Wearing a dark suit and a closed face, the actor appeared with his wife Hilaria and one of his seven children on Tuesday for the opening of his trial. Square glasses on his nose, he took a few notes during this day devoted to the selection of the jurors. A process that illustrated the difficulty of finding impartial people to weigh his responsibility. Among the dozens of people summoned, only a handful raised their hands when the judge asked who knew absolutely nothing about this case. Because the death of Halyna Hutchins, a talented 42-year-old director of photography from Ukraine, who had participated in investigative documentaries, has deeply shocked the film industry.
The trial of the gunsmith Rust, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, who placed the bullet in the reproduction of the period gun used by Alec Baldwin and was sentenced to 18 months in prison in April, has already been widely followed in the United States. The fate of Alec Baldwin will also be closely scrutinized: his conviction would set a historical precedent, capable of discouraging other actors from using real weapons in filming. The hearings are expected to last until Friday next week, before the jury deliberates.