Jury selection begins in Alec Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter trial over Rust shooting

Jury selection is starting on Tuesday in Alec Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter trial in the 2021 death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the Rust film set in New Mexico.

The 66-year-old actor and co-producer of the movie was unsuccessful in his latest request to get the charges dismissed on grounds that prosecutors had allowed potentially “exculpatory evidence” to be destroyed. A judge last month ruled that Baldwin’s legal team had failed to prove state prosecutors had acted in bad faith, and allowed the controversial case to proceed.

The trial in Santa Fe is beginning nearly three years after the death on a film set sent shockwaves across the entertainment industry. On 21 October 2021, Baldwin was rehearsing for the western on set at the Bonanza Creek Ranch, a popular location for Hollywood, when he pointed a prop firearm at Hutchins.

Baldwin, who faces up to 18 months in prison, has said he did not pull the trigger, but pulled back the hammer of the gun when it malfunctioned and fired. The single bullet killed Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza.

This is the second criminal trial stemming from the tragedy, a rare fatal shooting on a film set. Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, Rust’s chief weapons handler, was sentenced to 18 months in prison in April after she was convicted of involuntary manslaughter. Prosecutors alleged in her trial that she had put dummy rounds and at least one live round into the weapon, and that she had neglected to follow critical safety procedures.

Baldwin’s legal team is expected to cast blame on Gutierrez-Reed and continue to argue that he did not actually pull the trigger. The trial is moving forward after prosecutors had initially dismissed involuntary manslaughter charges against Baldwin last year when they said they needed more time to review evidence.

He was charged a second time after prosecutors said forensic testing on the gun revealed Baldwin had pulled the trigger. Baldwin’s team has cast doubt on the examination of the gun commissioned by prosecutors. The FBI conducted initial tests on the gun to see if it could have accidentally discharged, but the process involved striking and damaging the weapon. A later forensic analysis required replacing parts that had been damaged.

Baldwin’s lawyers recently sought to have the case thrown out over the handling of the gun during the investigation, but the judge sided with prosecutors.

Legal experts have said that Baldwin’s guilt may be harder to prove after Gutierrez-Reed was deemed responsible in the last trial. Prosecutors have sought to also draw attention to Baldwin’s role as a producer, and Baldwin previously faced scrutiny for his comments to a detective acknowledging how films try to cut costs and keep on a tight schedule.

But a judge ruled Monday that Baldwin’s producer position was not relevant to the trial, siding with defense lawyers and saying evidence related to his secondary role on the film would not be allowed.

After Hutchins’ death, it was reported that there had been two accidental firings of blank rounds on set before she was killed, and that some crew members had resigned the day prior partly due to worries about safety.

At jury selection for Gutierrez-Reed’s trial, prosecutors raised concerns about the challenges of seating a jury when so many potential candidates had been exposed to media coverage of the case.

Baldwin has a right to testify at the trial, but it is unclear if he will.

Last month, the actor and his wife, Hilaria Baldwin, announced the launch of a new TLC reality show chronicling their family.