Baldwin’s trial was upended by revelations that certain possibly exculpatory evidence was withheld from the defense team.
New Mexico prosecutors have decided not to move forward with an appeal regarding the dismissal of an involuntary manslaughter charge against Alec Baldwin related to the tragic shooting incident on a movie set. The Santa Fe district attorney’s office made the announcement on Monday.
Special Prosecutor Kari Morrissey has chosen to withdraw the appeal after a court decision in July to drop the charge against Baldwin concerning the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal on a movie set just outside Santa Fe in October 2021.
The appeal was withdrawn based on a ruling halfway through the trial by Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer, who dismissed the case due to allegations of evidence being withheld from the defense by the police and prosecutors. The unexpected decision to completely dismiss the case had a significant impact on the proceedings, as prosecutors had to reevaluate whether to press charges against Baldwin in the first place.
Baldwin’s trial was upended by revelations that ammunition was brought into the Santa Fe County sheriff’s office in March by a man who said it could be related to Hutchins’ killing. Prosecutors said they deemed the ammo unrelated and unimportant, while Baldwin’s lawyers say investigators “buried” the evidence in a separate case file and filed a successful motion to dismiss.
The district attorney’s office said the New Mexico attorney general would have carried forward the appeal but “did not intend to exhaustively pursue the appeal on behalf of the prosecution.”
“As a result, the State’s efforts to continue to litigate the case in a fair and comprehensive manner have been met with multiple barriers that have compromised its ability to prosecute to the fullest extent of the law,” the statement from local prosecutors stated.
