Alec Baldwin has been handed a major legal victory after a New Mexico district attorney dropped gun enhancement charges over the fatal shooting of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
The removal of the charge came after Mr Baldwin’s attorneys blasted a decision to slap the enhancement charge on the embattled actor because the law had been passed after the October 2021 shooting.
It means Mr Baldwin now faces a maximum sentence of 18 months prison if found guilty of involuntary manslaughter, rather than a five year minimum under the enhancement charge.
Mr Baldwin’s attorneys had last week accused prosecutors of committing a “basic legal error” by charging him under a version of the firearm-enhancement statute that was only enacted seven months after the fatal shooting.
Under New Mexico law, the enhancement charge could only apply to Ms Hutchins’ fatal shooting if the gun was “brandished” with intent to intimidate or injure a person.
Heather Brewer, a spokeswoman for the Santa Fe district attorney, told The Independent in a statement that prosecutors had dropped the firearm enhancement to “avoid further litigious distractions by Mr Baldwin and his attorneys.”
“The prosecution’s priority is securing justice, not securing billable hours for big-city attorneys,” Ms Brewer said.
A gun enhancement charge against Rust armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed has also been dropped.
Mr Baldwin’s attorney Luke Nikas has pushed back aggressively over the charges laid by Santa Fe prosecutors.
He has tried to have special prosecutor Andrea Reeb removed from the case, arguing that her position as an elected New Mexico state lawmaker should prohibit her from holding any authority in a judicial capacity.
Mr Nikas did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Prosecutors in New Mexico filed two felony charges of involuntary manslaughter against Mr Baldwin, who allegedly pointed a gun at Ms Hutchins that went off and fatally shot her.
Ms Gutierrez-Reed was also charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter, while first assistant director David Halls has agreed to plead guilty to the charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon.
Earlier this month, Ms Hutchins’ parents and sister filed a civil lawsuit against the actor seeking unspecified damages.
