Actor Alec Baldwin, left, sits with his lawyers Luke Nikas, second right, and Heather LeBlanc in District Court in Santa Fe, N.M., during a preliminary hearing for the "Rust" trial on Monday, July 8, 2024.
Baldwin faces a single charge of involuntary manslaughter in the death of a cinematographer on the set of the film, "Rust." (Luis Sánchez Saturno/Santa Fe New Mexican via AP) AP Nearly three years after cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot and killed on the New Mexico set of the film “Rust,” Alec Baldwin’s trial over her death is about to begin. The actor is in Santa Fe, and has appeared in court for the first time during pre-trial motions.
Here are the essential things to know. What charge does Alec Baldwin face? The actor entered a New Mexico courtroom Monday for the first time since the Oct. 21, 2021 shooting.
He is charged with felony involuntary manslaughter. If a jury unanimously convicts him, he could get 18 months in prison. Baldwin, the star and co-producer of the Western, was pointing a revolver at Hutchins during a rehearsal in a small church on the movie set at Bonanza Creek Ranch when the gun went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza.
Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer — but not the trigger — and the gun fired. Two major themes will predominate, one large, one small: the chaotic atmosphere of the movie set, and the details of the Italian-made classic revolver that Baldwin pointed at Hutchins. Baldwin’s team scored a major .
