Actor Alec Baldwin has been charged with the manslaughter of Galina Hutchins
If convicted, he faces up to 18 months in prison
A grand jury in the US state of New Mexico has indicted Hollywood actor Alec Baldwin in connection with the death of cameraman Galina Hutchins, whom he accidentally shot with a prop revolver during filming in October 2021.
According to the jury's decision, Baldwin is charged with involuntary manslaughter on the set of Rust.
The previous charges against the actor were dropped in April last year, just two weeks before the trial was to begin.
However, prosecutors later said that additional facts had emerged that required a second review. In particular, they conducted a new examination of the weapon used to kill Hutchins.
Baldwin insisted that he did not pull the trigger and only cocked the gun.
"I don't know what happened on the set. I don't know how the live round ended up in that revolver. I don't know," Baldwin said in an interview with ABC in December 2021.
However, after an examination, prosecutors in New Mexico concluded that the shot could not have been fired without pulling the trigger.
Baldwin's attorneys told the BBC that they were "fully prepared for trial."
The charge was based on two alternative assumptions: Baldwin was either negligent in the use of a firearm or acted with "total disregard or indifference to the safety of others." Prosecutors have indicated that the actor can only be convicted on one of these charges, not both.
A lawyer representing the Hutchins family said his clients were "looking forward to the criminal trial."
"Our clients have always wanted to know the truth about what happened on the day Galina Hutchins was tragically shot," said Gloria Allred.
Hutchins, a 42-year-old Ukrainian native, was killed during a scene rehearsal by a shot from the revolver used by Baldwin in the film, which for some reason was loaded with live ammunition instead of blanks.
Baldwin was sure that the revolver was loaded with blanks because the assistant director who handed him the weapon shouted the phrase "cold gun", which means safety.
Earlier it was reported that manslaughter charges were also to be brought against weapon props manager Hannah Gutierrez-Reed.
If found guilty, Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed face up to 18 months in prison and a $5000 fine.
Background. Earlier it was reported that the family of Galina Hutchins, who was killed on the set in Hollywood, filed a lawsuit against Alec Baldwin.
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