Alec Baldwin’s manslaughter trial is mistrial due to suppression of evidence

The court annulled the trial of Alec Baldwin by homicide involuntary on Friday, arguing suppression of evidence, in a surprising dramatic turn of the process that sought to clarify the actor’s responsibility in the tragedy that plunged the set of “Rust”.

Baldwin, 66, was in the dock for the death of director of photography Halyna Hutchins, who died in October 2021 during a rehearsal for the western film as a result of a fatal gunshot wound from the gun the actor was using on the production.

But his attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the case Thursday night, arguing that the state hid a set of bullets from them that was turned over to authorities more than two years after the case, potentially key evidence in determining who was responsible for Hutchins’ death.

Following a dramatic Friday of questioning with investigators and people connected to the investigation that raised questions about the handling of the evidence and the bias of prosecutor Kari Morrissey, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer granted the motion.

“The voluntary withholding of this information by the State was intentional and deliberate”Sommer said. “If this conduct does not rise to the level of bad faith, it certainly comes close enough to bad faith to show signs of flagrant harm.”

“The discovery of a State violation injected an unnecessary and incurable delay into the trial,” he added.

The suppression of evidence argument came up Thursday as Baldwin’s attorney, Alex Spiro, questioned forensic expert Marissa Poppell, who confirmed that she had received the set of bullets from a former police officer and had classified them, under superior instruction, outside the case file, without sending them to the FBI for testing.

Questioned by prosecutor Kari Morrissey, Poppell maintained that the bullets did not match the real ammunition found on the set of “Rust”which made it seem like the point had been extinguished.

But amid the motion, Poppell was called back to court Friday, now with the bullets to be examined by Judge Sommer, as well as by the prosecution and defense, who asked to include them as evidence in the case.

Baldwin’s defense narrative during the first two days of the trial was that police failed to thoroughly investigate the case and were too quick to focus on Baldwin.

“A perfect plan”

On Friday, Spiro said that investigators “they buried” evidence by not presenting the set of bullets.

Spiro had already mentioned in his opening statements on Wednesday that, while conducting tests, the FBI irreparably damaged the Colt .45-caliber revolver that fatally wounded Hutchins.

Which, according to the lawyer, prevented them from verifying Baldwin’s version of events that the authorities question: that the gun went off without him pulling the trigger.

“It was a perfect plan,” the lawyer said Friday, inferring that the destruction of the weapon and the suppression of evidence were intentional to harm his client.

Baldwin, wearing a dark suit and rimmed glasses, watched the argument with a tense face and crossed arms, while his wife, Hilaria, and siblings, Stephen and Beth, did the same in the back of the courtroom.

After the cancellation, the actor broke down in tears and hugged his family.

The investigation into the case never specified how the live bullets, found in the prop cart, bullet box and cartridge belts belonging to Baldwin and another actor, got onto the set, something prohibited under industry standards. Hannah Gutierrez, the film’s gunsmith, was tried and found guilty this year in the case, which led to her being sentenced to 18 months in prison.