Alec Baldwin shooting: Criminal charges 'not ruled out' over cinematographer's death
27 October 2021, 06:22
Criminal charges have not been ruled out after a cinematographer was killed during production of Alec Baldwin's new film.
The Hollywood star accidentally shot Halyna Hutchins while working on a Western movie, Rust, in New Mexico.
He had been told the gun did not contain live ammunition before he rehearsed with the weapon, it was previously stated.
The New York Times reports that Santa Fe County district attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies said "we haven't ruled out anything" in the investigation.
"Everything at this point, including criminal charges, is on the table," she said.
Authorities are looking into what kind of round was in the gun that killed Ms Hutchins, 42, and who put the ammunition in the weapon, which was described by Ms Carmack-Altwies as an "antique era appropriate gun".
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She has taken issue with the description of the weapon as a "prop gun", as it was referred to in court documents.
The prosecutor said: "There were an enormous amount of bullets on this set and we need to find out what kinds they were."
She warned it could take "probably weeks, if not months" of investigation to "need to get to the point of charging".
Ms Hutchins, considered a rising star in film production, was killed on Thursday.
The incident also left Rust's director, Joel Souza, with an injury, but he has since left hospital and is recovering.
Production has been halted as police probe what happened. Court documents say an assistant director unwittingly handed Mr Baldwin a loaded weapon and told him it was safe to use shortly before the incident.
The 63-year-old actor has said he is "heartbroken" and co-operating with the investigation.
In a tweet, he said he had offered support to Ms Hutchins' family.
