Photo Credit: Ramsay de Give
A New Mexico judge dismissed Alec Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter case on July 12 in the middle of his trial.
Associated Press reports Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer made her decision based on the police and prosecutors withholding evidence from the defense in the 2021 shooting of Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film ‘Rust.’
It was revealed in court on Thursday (July 11) that ammunition was brought into the sheriff’s office in March by a man who said it could be related to Hutchins’ killing. Prosecutors said they deemed the ammo unrelated and unimportant. However, Baldwin’s attorney alleged that they intentionally “buried” it. Baldwin’s legal team subsequently filed a motion to dismiss the case, and the judge approved.
Judge Sommer stated, “The late discovery of this evidence during trial has impeded the effective use of evidence in such a way that it has impacted the fundamental fairness of the proceedings.” She continued, “If this conduct does not rise to the level of bad faith, it certainly comes so near to bad faith to show signs of scorching.”
After Sommer read her decision, Baldwin broke down into tears and hugged his two attorneys. He then made a gesture to the front of the court and turned to hug his wife, Hilaria, who was also weeping. She is the mother of seven of his eight children. They embraced for 12 seconds. After exiting the Santa Fe courtroom, he jumped into an SUV. The actor did not speak to the media.
Contributions made by Morgan Lee and Andrew Dalton
