Alec Baldwin has been charged once again over the fatal on-set shooting of Halyna Hutchins. Photo / AP
A New Mexico jury has charged actor Alec Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter over the fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins on a film set in October 2021.
The previous charges against Baldwin were dropped in April, two weeks before a trial was set to start, reports the BBC.
However, local prosecutors have since carried out more forensic tests on the gun used in the shooting on the Rust film set.
Baldwin’s lawyers told the BBC, “We look forward to our day in court.”
The actor, 65, was rehearsing with a Colt .45 pistol before filming a scene for the western film when it fired without warning.
Cinematographer Hutchins, 42, was killed and director Joel Souza was wounded. Baldwin has since insisted he did not pull the trigger, only drawing back the pistol’s hammer.
But prosecutors say new analysis of the weapon shows even though Baldwin denied pulling the trigger, “given the tests, findings and observations reported here, the trigger had to be pulled or depressed sufficiently to release the fully cocked or retracted hammer of the evidence revolver”.
The film set’s weapons supervisor, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter and evidence tampering in the case, with her trial set to begin next month.
Associated Press reports two of the witnesses seen at the New Mexico court include Rust crew members — one who was there when the gun went off, and another who had left the set the previous day over safety concerns.
Baldwin is yet to make a statement on being charged a second time. In April, he spoke out amid the news that he would no longer face criminal charges.
At the time, he was facing charges that could have landed him up to 18 months in prison.
After the news the charges had been dropped, Baldwin took to Instagram to thank his wife, Hilaria, for her constant support.
“I owe everything I have to this woman,” he captioned a photo of the two of them embracing — adding, “(And to you, Luke),” probably referring to his lawyer Luke Nikas, who represented him in the case.
The actor always maintained his innocence and pleaded not guilty to the charges brought by the Santa Fe district attorney last year, including involuntary manslaughter.
Involuntary manslaughter can involve a killing that happens while a defendant is doing something that is lawful but dangerous, and is acting negligently or without caution.
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