LOS ANGELES — Officials in New Mexico plan to announce on Thursday (Friday in the Philippines) whether they will pursue criminal charges against Alec Baldwin or others in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of Western movie Rust.
New Mexico First Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies and special prosecutor Andrea Reeb will announce their decision at 9 a.m. Mountain Standard Time (1600 GMT), according to a statement issued on Wednesday.
Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was killed and director Joel Souza was wounded when a gun Mr. Baldwin was using during a rehearsal in October 2021 fired off a live bullet. The movie was being filmed at Bonanza Creek Ranch outside Santa Fe, New Mexico.
The 30 Rock and Saturday Night Live actor, who also served as a producer on Rust, has denied responsibility for the shooting.
Mr. Baldwin has said he was told the gun was “cold,” an industry term meaning it is safe to use, and that he did not pull the trigger. He has sued crew members for negligence.
An FBI forensic test of the single-action revolver that Mr. Baldwin was using found it “functioned normally” and would not fire without the trigger being pulled.
New Mexico’s Office of the Medical Investigator has ruled the shooting an accident, saying the gun did not appear to have been deliberately loaded with a live round. Authorities have been trying to determine how a real bullet made its way to the movie set.
Ms. Hutchins’ family settled a wrongful death lawsuit against Mr. Baldwin and other producers last year. Under the agreement, filming on the low-budget movie is set to resume this month with Ms. Hutchins’ husband serving as an executive producer. — Reuters