In an effort to clear his name, Alec Baldwin sued people involved in handling and supplying the loaded gun he was using when it fired, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in a New Mexico filming accident. Baldwin filed a cross-complaint in Los Angeles Superior Court alleging negligence by some of the people sued by a script supervisor, Mamie Mitchell. It seeks a share of any damages that Mitchell may win from the people Baldwin names and asks that they pay for any damages assessed against him, the Associated Press reports.
Mitchell was standing behind Hutchins, who died after being wounded during setup for a scene in the western movie “Rust” at a film set ranch on the outskirts of Santa Fe on Oct. 21, 2021.
Mitchell sued Baldwin, who was a producer on the film, the production company and others involved for assault and negligence. Baldwin says that while working on camera angles with Hutchins during rehearsal for a scene, he pointed the gun in her direction and pulled back and released the hammer of the gun, which discharged. The shot killed Hutchins and wounded director Joel Souza. The actor said neither he nor Hutchins knew the weapon contained a live round. “This tragedy occurred on a movie set — not a gun range, not a battlefield, not a location where even a remote possibility should exist that a gun would contain live ammunition,” the lawsuit said. Baldwin says he was told the gun was safe and that he did not pull the trigger. An FBI forensic report found the weapon could not have fired unless the trigger was pulled. “More than anyone else on that set, Baldwin has been wrongfully viewed as the perpetrator of this tragedy. By these cross-claims, Baldwin seeks to clear his name,” the actor’s suit says. New Mexico’s Office of the Medical Investigator determined the shooting was an accident. Prosecutors are deciding whether criminal charges should be filed.