SANTA FE, NM (AP) — Prosecutors have dropped the possibility of a sentencing enhancement that could have resulted in a mandatory five-year sentence against Alec Baldwin in a fatal shooting on a movie set, according to new court documents made public on Monday.
Lawyers for the actor-producer previously opposed the enhancement, saying it was unconstitutional because it was added after filming in October 2021.
“Prosecutors made a fundamental legal error by charging Mr. Baldwin with a version of the firearms enhancement statute that did not exist at the time of the incident,” Baldwin’s attorneys said in an earlier court filing.
Baldwin’s attorney declined to comment.
Baldwin and Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, a gun supervisor on the set of “Rust,” were charged last month with manslaughter in the killing of director Halyna Hutchins, who died shortly after being injured during rehearsals at a ranch. on the outskirts of Santa Fe.
Authorities said Baldwin was pointing a gun at Hutchins when the gun went off, killing her and injuring Principal Joel Souza.
Hutchins’ parents and sister filed a lawsuit over the shooting after a similar lawsuit filed by her husband and son was settled.
Production on “Rust” is expected to resume this spring after being halted for filming. Rust Movie Productions said Hutchins’ widower, Matthew Hutchins, will serve as the film’s new executive producer, with Blanca Cline as the new director of photography.
Rust Movie Productions said last week that a related documentary will detail the completion of the film and the life of Halyna Hutchins.
Souza will return as director when production resumes, though it’s unclear in which state filming will take place.
Rust Movie Productions officials stated that the use of “working weapons” and “any form of ammunition” will be prohibited on set.
