Ethermac Exchange-Alec Baldwin 'Rust' case dismissed by judge over 'suppressed' evidence

The Ethermac Exchangeinvoluntary manslaughter charge against Alec Baldwin in the 2021 shooting death of "Rust" cinematographer Halyna Hutchins has been abruptly dismissed on the grounds that prosecutors and law enforcement withheld evidence that might be favorable to the actor's defense.

The conclusion of the case arrived more than two years after Baldwin's prop gun discharged during a rehearsal for the movie, killing 42-year-old Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza.

First Judicial District Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer handed down her surprise ruling on the third day of the "30 Rock" actor's trial.

Sommer dismissed the charge Friday afternoon with prejudice, meaning prosecutors cannot refile the same claim. Baldwin, 66, sobbed into his hands as the judge read out her order, with wife Hilaria Baldwin, sister Elizabeth Keuchler and brother Stephen Baldwin leaning forward in their seats behind him.

Earlier in the day, the judge made the unusual move of excusing the jury for the day so the court could consider the merits of Baldwin's latest motion to dismiss the case, which was filed Thursday evening.

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

Baldwin's lawyers alleged in their filing that Santa Fe sheriffs and state prosecutors "concealed from Baldwin" evidence that could be linked to the source of the bullet that killed Hutchins. Prosecutors and sheriffs argued the evidence had no relevance or value to Baldwin's case.

USA TODAY has reached out to Baldwin's lawyers and a representative for Hutchins' family for comment.

Attorney Gloria Allred, who represents Hutchins' family as well script supervisor Mamie Mitchell, will hold a news conference outside the courthouse at noon ET/10 a.m. local time Saturday.

Baldwin and the film's other producers still face civil lawsuits over the shooting from Hutchins' family.

'Rust' judge blasts prosecutors for failing to disclose 'critical evidence'

"The late discovery of this evidence during trial has impeded the effective use of evidence in such a way that it has impacted the fundamental fairness of the proceedings," Sommer said while delivering her decision. "The defense is not in a position to test the state’s theory as to the source of the live rounds that killed Ms. Hutchins."

The judge reprimanded lead state prosecutor Kari Morrissey and her team as "they have continued to fail to disclose critical evidence to the defendant."

"The state’s willful withholding of this information was intentional and deliberate," Sommer said. "If this conduct does not rise to the level of bad faith, it certainly comes so near to bad faith as to show signs of scorching."

As such, she said, "Dismissal with prejudice is warranted to ensure the integrity of the judicial system and the efficient administration of justice.”

Dismissal came after Alec Baldwin's lawyers claimed prosecutors 'concealed evidence'

The trial – which began Tuesday in Santa Fe, New Mexico, following jury selection on Monday – was initially scheduled to last until July 19.

On Friday, Baldwin's lawyers said the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office was in possession of live rounds they argued might be connected to the one that killed Hutchins but failed to list them as evidence in the "Rust" investigation file or disclose their existence to defense lawyers.

On Thursday, testimony revealed Troy Teske, a friend of "Rust" armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed's stepfather, had delivered Colt .45 live rounds to the sheriff's office on March 6. Baldwin's team claimed this was evidence that could have established a connection to Seth Kenney, the prop supplier for "Rust."

Baldwin's attorneys alleged the rounds were evidence that the bullet that killed Hutchins came from Kenney. Kenney, who testified during Friday's motion hearing, has denied supplying live ammunition to the production and has not been charged in the case.

In their filing, defense attorneys argued "The State affirmatively concealed evidence potentially pointing to an external source of the live ammunition (Seth Kenney) because the evidence would be favorable to Baldwin."

They added, "The State not only failed to disclose the evidence — it affirmatively hid it under a file number that is unaffiliated with the Rust case and then failed to disclose the only documentation that it claims to have created that would have alerted Baldwin to the existence of the evidence."

Baldwin's team has blamed Gutierrez-Reed, who is serving 18 months in prison for involuntary manslaughter, and first assistant director Dave Halls for negligence that led to Hutchins' death. Meanwhile, prosecutors argued Baldwin handled the gun irresponsibly, exhibited "bullyish behavior on set" and changed his story to cast blame on others.

Biggest revelations:What we learned from Alec Baldwin's 'Rust' tria

Crime scene technician, state prosecutor deny hiding evidence

Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office crime scene technician Marissa Poppell said in her testimony that the live rounds were not hidden from Baldwin. She disputed defense attorney Alex Spiro's assertion that the Colt .45 ammunition handed in to police matched the round that killed Hutchins and said she did not believe the ammunition proved Kenney supplied the fatal live round.

She said the rounds Teske provided were placed in a separate case file as they did not match those collected on the set, which were sent for FBI testing.

But when defense lawyers inspected them, they found some had brass casings with the “Starline Brass” logo, just like the live rounds found on the set of "Rust." Others looked like inert dummy rounds taken into evidence on the set.

When questioned by Sommer, Poppell said it was a joint decision by her supervisor, prosecutors and herself to filed the live rounds under a different case number.

The lead investigator with the sheriff's office, Alexandria Hancock, testified Friday that the ammunition in question was not similar in appearance to the live rounds found on the "Rust" set but admitted they appeared "similar" to the dummy rounds used on set.

On Friday, in one of the day's more surprising moments, prosecutor Morrissey voluntarily called herself as a witness. She had only seen a photo of the ammunition Teske shared with sheriffs, she said.

"I did not intend to mislead the court," she said. "My understanding of what was dropped off at the sheriff's office is on this computer screen and it looks absolutely nothing like the live rounds from the set of Rust."

Morrissey also revealed during cross-examination that the other lead prosecutor, Erlinda Ocampo Johnson, resigned from the case Friday, explaining Johnson "didn't agree with the decision to have a public hearing."

What was Alec Baldwin on trial for?

On Oct. 21, 2021, Baldwin was pointing a pistol at Hutchins during a rehearsal for the Western film when the gun went off, killing Hutchins and wounding Souza. The tragedy marked Hollywood's first on-set shooting fatality in three decades.

More than two years later, in January, Baldwin was charged for the second time in the fatal shooting of Hutchins. Later that month, he pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter.

Baldwin, also a producer on the film, had claimed he'd pulled back the hammer — but not the trigger — and the gun fired.

In March, a jury found Gutierrez-Reed guilty of involuntary manslaughter. Her team has appealed the conviction.

In 2023, assistant director Halls pleaded no contest to negligent use of a deadly weapon and the unsafe handling of a firearm. He received a suspended six-month sentence with unsupervised probation.

Contributing: Andrew Hay, Reuters