In a shock decision last month, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed the actor's involuntary manslaughter case because of withheld evidence.
The judge in Alec Baldwin Rust A New Mexico grand jury issued a written indictment on Wednesday accusing state prosecutors of “willful and deliberate misconduct” in the handling of evidence that led to the accidental killing of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
In the filing, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer found that the prosecution “deliberately and intentionally withheld” evidence from the defense, Hollywood Reporter. The judge also said the lead special prosecutor in the case, Carrie Morrissey, had presented “inconsistent” testimony related to the evidence she suppressed.
“Evidence relating to the source of the live bullet that killed Ms. Hutchins, and additional information relating to how that live bullet got into Rust “The combination is likely to influence the jury’s calculations of proximate cause and negligence on the part of a third person or persons,” the judge said in his order issued Wednesday.
Last month, in a shocking decision, Sommer dismissed the only criminal charge against Baldwin after his lawyers raised questions about how New Mexico law enforcement and prosecutors handled evidence. It was revealed that retired officer Troy Teske had turned over a stash of live ammunition, and that while it was collected and seized by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office, it was not turned over to the defense or through a supplemental evidence report.
In her July ruling, Sommer said the evidence could have helped Baldwin’s defense undermine the prosecution’s theory of the case and bolstered the actor’s claim that the fatal shooting was unforeseeable. “There is no way for the court to correct this error,” she said before granting the motion to dismiss with prejudice.
The sudden turn of events ended Baldwin's three-year trial after Hutchins was killed during an on-set incident on October 21, 2021. The incident occurred when a prop gun the actor was using went off while he was rehearsing a scene with Hutchins and Rust Director Joel Souza, who was also injured, and Baldwin, who has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter, have long insisted he did not pull the trigger.
