Alec Baldwin, surrounded by his wife and one of his sons on the first day of trial for the death of Halyna Hutchins

Santa Fe, New Mexico. A cloud of photographers (more than 40 accredited media) awaited the arrival of Alec Baldwin to the Court of the First Judicial District, where the trial against the actor for the death of Halyna Hutchinsthe director of photography who died in 2021 during the filming of Rust after being shot by the gun held by the actor and producer of the film. He always claimed to be “innocent” because he claimed that he did not touch the trigger, although the FBI investigation proved otherwise.

Baldwin, who was dressed in a black suit and looked worried, was accompanied by his two lawyers, Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro, as well as his wife, Hilariaand one of his sons, who have been providing moral support throughout the day. He faces charges of reckless homicide and a jury will be in charge of deciding his fate. On this first day, prosecutors Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis and the defense, led by Spiro, have asked detailed questions about gun ownership and handling, a key issue given that almost half of New Mexico residents are registered gun owners.

The events took place a year and a half ago in Santa Fe, where they were filming the western Rust. After a break they resumed rehearsals and Baldwin shot the director of photography, Halyna Hutchinswho died shortly after arriving at the hospital. Prosecutors filed charges against Baldwin and the film’s gunsmith, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed. He always pleaded “not guilty” and the charges were dropped in April 2023. A few months later, the case was taken up again: a forensic report showed that the trigger on the Colt .45 revolver Baldwin used, which was not supposed to contain live ammunition, was “pulled just enough” to have caused the incident. “This fatal accident was the consequence of the hammer being manually retracted to its fully rearward and cocked position followed, at some point, by the rearward pull or pressure of the trigger,” it concluded. “Although Alec Baldwin repeatedly denies pulling the trigger, given the evidence, findings and observations reported here, the trigger had to have been pulled or depressed.”

There are also charges against the film’s gunsmith, Hannah Gutiérrez Reedin charge of supervising the weapons used in the filming, and the first assistant director of the film, Dave Hallswho pleaded guilty to negligent use of a deadly weapon.