Actor accused of acting negligently after firing loaded gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, who was killed
A judge in Los Angeles has ruled that a civil lawsuit accusing Alec Baldwin of acting negligently in the deadly 2021 shooting on the set of his western film Rust can proceed to trial.
According to Variety, the superior court judge Maurice Leiter issued a summary judgment on Friday allowing the case to move forward. Leiter’s ruling – obtained by the outlet – said that “a reasonable jury could find that Mr Baldwin recklessly disregarded the probability that pointing a gun in the direction of someone, with the finger on the trigger, would cause emotional distress”.
The lawsuit in question was filed by Serge Svetnoy, a gaffer on the production, against the film’s producers, including Baldwin, who was also the lead actor. Svetnoy has alleged that he suffered emotional distress as a result of the shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, who was mortally wounded on the movie set in New Mexico in October 2021 when a prop gun held by Baldwin fired a live round of ammunition. The film’s director, Joel Souza, was also shot and injured.
The ruling on Friday comes after Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter case was dismissed in 2024 after a New Mexico judge determined that state prosecutors had withheld evidence.
