Alec Baldwin to face civil trial over movie set death
Actor Alec Baldwin will face another lawsuit in 2021 over his Rust movie set shooting.
In 2021, tragedy struck in New Mexico when the gun in Baldwin’s hand was fired live, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza.
A judge in New Mexico dismissed with prejudice a manslaughter case filed against the actor in 2024 after prosecutors allegedly concealed potentially exculpatory evidence, but a new civil lawsuit has been given the green light.
According to court documents obtained by DailyMail.com, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Maurice Leiter ruled that a civil lawsuit filed by Rust boss Serge Svetnoy will proceed to determine whether Baldwin actually negligently discharged the loaded gun.
Baldwin always insisted he had no knowledge of live rounds and also denied pulling the trigger.
Svetnoy is suing Baldwin and Rust’s production company, alleging that Baldwin’s negligence in the production and the film’s producer caused her emotional distress.
“A reasonable jury could conclude that Mr. Baldwin recklessly disregarded the possibility that pointing the gun at someone while his finger was on the trigger would cause emotional distress,” Judge Leiter said in court documents.
Svetnoy’s lawyer, John M Upton, told the Daily Mail that they were “pleased with the court’s decision to deny the motions for summary judgment filed by Rust Movie Productions and Alex Baldwin.”
He continued: “These decisions allow our client to present his case at a jury trial scheduled for October of this year. He looks forward to finally having his day in court on this long-pending matter.”
The trial was originally scheduled to begin in May, but attorneys for Baldwin and Svetnoy requested a continuation as they worked on settlement negotiations.
The judge postponed the hearing to October 12 if an agreement could not be reached.
However, he expressed his concern about the prolongation of the case.
“I’m a little concerned about whether this case will continue and when it might reach a resolution,” he said, according to Variety.
