Alec Baldwin charged with involuntary manslaughter over fatal shooting of cinematographer on Rust film set

Hollywood actor Alec Baldwin has been formally charged in New Mexico with involuntary manslaughter over the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of the western film Rust.

Baldwin has vowed to fight the two counts against him, with his lawyer calling the case a "terrible miscarriage of justice".

A live round killed Halyna Hutchins, 42, after a prop gun held by the 64-year-old star was discharged during rehearsals for the movie in October 2021.

The charges - which could see Baldwin sent to jail for up to five years - would require prosecutors to convince a jury that Baldwin was not just negligent but reckless in his use of a firearm.

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who was responsible for weapons on the Rust set, has also been charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter.

Legal experts have said prosecutors will struggle to win convictions without proof Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed knew live ammunition was present but took no precautions.

In a statement of probable cause of Hutchins's death, the Santa Fe District Attorney listed several problems with Baldwin's conduct.

* Baldwin was not present for required firearms training

* After failing to show up to this training, he received a 30-minute on-set training during which he was distracted talking to his family on the phone

* He exhibited "reckless behaviour" in the lead up to Hutchins's death

* He had pointed the firearm at Hutchins in the lead up to the incident violating gun safety rules

* Baldwin had not performed the required safety checks with Gutierrez-Reed

* He broke protocol by letting Gutierrez-Reed leave the church set

* He did not deal with safety complaints on set

* He did not use a replica firearm for the unscheduled rehearsal

* He allowed the hiring of Gutierrez-Reed, who had worked on just one production before the movie, which showed he "failed to demand the minimum safety standards, protocols, and requirements on set"

The District Attorney also said that on the day of the shooting, there were "no less than a dozen acts, or omissions of recklessness" on the set before the incident, not including the actor's handling of the gun.

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