A grand jury indicted actor Alec Baldwin on a charge of involuntary manslaughter in the 2021 fatal shooting on the New Mexico set of the movie “Rust.” The indictment in Santa Fe comes nine months after prosecutors dropped nearly identical charges against Baldwin, citing “new facts” that demanded additional investigation, reports the Albuquerque Journal. Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer of the movie, was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal. The gun fired, killing Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza. Special prosecutors Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis dismissed the felony charge in April after “new facts were revealed that demand further investigation and forensic analysis.”
“If it is determined that the gun did not malfunction, charges against Mr. Baldwin will proceed,” Morrissey and Lewis wrote in the case of Hannah Gutierrez Reed, the weapons supervisor on the film, who remains charged with involuntary manslaughter. Prosecutors in August received a new firearms report that appeared to contradict a portion of Baldwin’s account of the shooting. Baldwin has maintained that he did not pull the trigger of a prop Colt .45 revolver he was holding. Baldwin’s attorneys said they will fight the new charges. Arizona expert Lucien. Haag, author of the firearms report, concluded that a trigger pull would have been required to fire the Italian-made Pietta .45 caliber prop revolver that killed Hutchins. Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer but did not pull the trigger. “Although Alec Baldwin repeatedly denies 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,” Haag wrote.