Alec Baldwin's attorneys file two motions to dismiss 'Rust' charges

Attorneys for Alec Baldwin have filed two new motions to dismiss New Mexico’s involuntary manslaughter case against the actor, stemming from an accidental shooting death on the set of the movie “Rust” in 2021.

In a 22-page filing Monday obtained by Newsday, attorneys from the Manhattan firm Quinn Emanuel ask for dismissal of the indictment against Baldwin on the grounds of “failure to allege a criminal offense.” In a 34-page filing that day, they ask for dismissal based on the government’s demolishing of a prop gun during testing, destroying evidence that might have been used by the defense.

The former motion argues, “The State has pointed to no criminal prosecution in U.S. history predicated on the theory that an actor should have independently confirmed the safety of a prop after the responsible crew members had already done so. This is the first.” It said the prosecution “acknowledges that [Baldwin] had every reason in the world to think that it contained only inert rounds — as any other actor would believe in similar circumstances.”

That motion adds, “If the State cannot allege that Baldwin was subjectively aware that his actions created a substantial risk … this is not a viable criminal case.”

The latter motion states that government testers destroyed the prop “by repeatedly and pointlessly striking it with a mallet. Government agents knew that the firearm would not survive their clumsy ‘tests’ intact. They said so explicitly in emails.” The motion says the testers did not preserve the original state of the prop through photographs or video, nor inform the defense “they were conducting destructive testing. … The law is clear: the government may not knowingly deprive the defense of potentially useful evidence by destroying it.”

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was killed and director Joel Souza wounded when a live round rather than a dummy round discharged from a prop gun Baldwin handled upon assurances it was safe. 

Armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the crew member responsible for firearms, was sentenced last month to 18 months in prison for involuntary manslaughter. First assistant director David Halls, who secondarily checked the gun and deemed it safe, was sentenced in March 2023 to 6 months of unsupervised probation for negligent use of a deadly weapon.

Kari Morrissey, one of the two lead prosecutors appointed by the Santa Fe County District Attorney, told Newsday in an email, “We will not be making a statement regarding the recently filed motions. We have 14 days to file a written response and the written responses will be our only statements.”

A representative for Quinn Emanuel told Newsday the law firm was preparing a response.

A hearing on the motions is set for May 17. The trial previously was scheduled to begin July 10, with jury selection on July 9. Baldwin, 66, who was born in Amityville and raised in Massapequa, has pleaded not guilty.

The three-time Emmy Award winner initially had charges against him dropped. Prosecutors later convened a grand jury that in January indicted him on a charge of “involuntary manslaughter (negligent use of a firearm)” or, alternatively, “involuntary manslaughter (without due caution or circumspection).” Either charge is a fourth-degree felony carrying a basic sentence of 18 months' imprisonment and a $5,000 fine.