New Mexico judge dismisses Alec Baldwins malicious prosecution suit in Rust case
July 30 (Reuters) - A New Mexico judge has thrown out a misconduct lawsuit filed by actor Alec Baldwin against local prosecutors and sheriff's officials over their pursuit of criminal charges against him for the fatal 2021 shooting on the set of the Western movie "Rust."
Judge Casey Fitch dismissed Baldwin's complaint on Tuesday for lack of "significant action" in the case over the past 180 days. The one-page order, made public on Wednesday, allows any party in the lawsuit to seek reinstatement within 30 days.
In a statement later on Tuesday, Luke Nikas, a lawyer for Baldwin, said settlement discussions were underway and the case could be refiled if they were unsuccessful.
Baldwin sued special prosecutor Kari Morrissey, District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies, Santa Fe County law enforcement investigators and other public officials in January, accusing them of malicious abuse of process, defamation and mishandling of evidence.
The lawsuit said the prosecutors and others had conspired to manufacture a criminal case against Baldwin for political and personal gain when they charged him with manslaughter in the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
The civil suit followed the abrupt dismissal of Baldwin's criminal case in July 2024 during his trial in the New Mexico capital.
The trial judge ruled then that the special prosecutor and sheriff's office had deliberately withheld evidence from Baldwin on the source of a live round that killed Hutchins and wounded director Joel Souza.
Hutchins' death, Hollywood's first on-set fatal shooting in nearly 30 years, shocked the movie industry and sparked calls for an overhaul of firearms safety on film productions.
Morrissey has said prosecutors had long known the actor would file a retaliatory civil lawsuit.
The Ukrainian-born cinematographer died when Baldwin pointed a pistol at her while rehearsing, cocked the weapon and possibly pulled the trigger as they set up a camera shot on a movie set near Santa Fe, his lawyers said.
The gun, a reproduction 1873 single-action army revolver, fired a live round inadvertently loaded by Hannah Gutierrez, the production's weapons handler. Gutierrez was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in March and sentenced to 18 months in jail.
Baldwin, also a "Rust" producer, has always said live rounds should not have been allowed on set and he was not responsible for weapons safety. (Reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; additional reporting by Donna Bryson; Editing by Saad Sayeed and Kate Mayberry)
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