A week before the first court hearing in the Rust criminal case against Alec Baldwin and armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed for the fatal October 2021 shooting of Halyna Hutchins, the Santa Fe District Attorney has added a particularly poignant individual to their witness list.
In a fourth amended state’s witness list for preliminary hearing filed yesterday in New Mexico, D.A. Mary Carmack-Altwies now has Matthew Hutchins on the 46 named persons roll (read it here).
The insertion of the slain cinematographer’s husband potentially providing information for the DA in the case and forthcoming trial could be an inflection moment for the tragic matter.
With Baldwin and Reed charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter and presently facing up to five years behind bars if found guilty, the initial hearing in the Rust case is scheduled for February 24. Set to held before state Judge Mary Marlowe Summer, the hearing will be virtual with the defendants expected to be in attendance.
Coming almost two weeks after the D.A. released her first witness list full of Rust crew members and a lot of law enforcement officials, this latest list certainly appears to be another shift in tone from the salutes of last October when widower Hutchins called off his February 2022 filed wrongful death suit against Baldwin and Rust producers to become an executive producer on an as yet up in the air resurrected Rust.
When charges were unveiled against Baldwin and Reed in late January, Hutchins’ lead lawyer seemed to lean away from the ethos of the settlement. “Our independent investigation also supports charges are warranted,” said Hutchins’ family attorney Brian J. Panish on January 31. “It is a comfort to the family that, in New Mexico, no one is above the law,” the LA-based Panish | Shea | Boyle | Ravipudi LLP partner added. “We support the charges, will fully cooperate with this prosecution, and fervently hope the justice system works to protect the public and hold accountable those who break the law.”
Adding another twist ,a February 14 declaration of a Baldwin-led production of the indie Western set to start up this spring and a documentary on deceased DoP Hutchins in the works too, Matthew Hutchins was named as an EP.
The newly amended witness list has Matthew Hutchins’ Albuquerque lawyer Randi McGinn and her office among contact information. Hutchins’ primary attorney Panish was unavailable for comment on the new witness list, Deadline was told Friday.
The Santa Fa D.A.’s office had no comment when contacted about the latest version of their witness list and Matthew Hutchins now being on it
Alec Baldwin’s lawyer was also not available for comment, Deadline was told today,
However, sources close to the Rust production indicate that Matthew Hutchins remains an active EP on the upcoming Rust feature, despite appearances to the contrary, Essentially, the perception is that the DA is looking to build a robust case in how the aftermath between Baldwin and Halyna Hutchins’ played out and that is why so many names are appearing on the growing witness list .
There is no doubt that the D.A.’s witness list is putting a lot of key players up for giving testimony if called.
Rust director Joel Souza, who was injured in the blast from the star/producer Baldwin-held 1880s prop gun that killed Hutchins on October 21, 2021, is on the list as is 1st Assistant Director David Halls, who cut an as-yet unreleased plea deal with the D.A. Amidst FBI agents and Santa Fe Sheriff’s office detectives, also on the list are Rust script supervisor Maime Mitchell (who has a negligence civil suit in LA against Baldwin and Rust producers) and armorer mentor Seth Kenney; and prop master Sarah Zachry, both of whom were under scrutiny for the shooting and the still unresolved matter of how live ammo got on the Bonanza Creek Ranch set of the $7 million flick.
Fighting the enhancement provision of one of the involuntary manslaughter charges and the constitutionality of the D.A. appointed special prosecutor in the criminal case, Baldwin has repeatedly insisted he did not pull the trigger while pointing the gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal that turned terribly wrong, evidence and analysis from the local sheriff’s office and the FBI contained in a 551-page report made public November 18 bluntly disagrees. “With the hammer at full cock, the revolver could not be made to fire without a pull of the trigger while the working internal components were intact and functional,” the document from the Santa Fe Sheriff’s office said.
Adding to that, with several previously filed civil lawsuits in California and New Mexico over the shooting of Hutchins, Gloria Allred last week brought a suit on behalf of the DoP’s Ukrainian-based family members Olga Solovey, Anatoli Androsvych and Svetlana Zemko against Baldwin, his management firm Cavalry Media, and the Western movie’s producers. That suit asked for unspecified damages “against each defendant.”
Interestingly, Matthew Hutchins’ attorney put some fast distance between his client and that lawsuit.
“Matt Hutchins is pursuing claims on his behalf and on behalf of Andros,” lawyer Panish told Deadline on February 9 after the action from Halyna Hutchins’ parents and sibling was unveiled. “We do not believe any other family members have a claim under New Mexico or California law. Neither Mr. Hutchins nor his attorneys were made aware of the family’s intention to file a lawsuit before today.”