'Rust' Judge Calls Out 'Deliberate Misconduct' By Prosecutors In Alec Baldwin Trial
By Kristin Myers on August 4, 2024 at 7:00 AM EDT
Last month, during his highly publicized "Rust" trial, a judge decided to dismiss the state's case against Alec Baldwin with prejudice.
The 66-year-old actor had been charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on October 21, 2021.
Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer decided to dismiss the case against Alec Baldwin with prejudice after uncovering what she deemed "misconduct" from the prosecution.
'Rust' Judge Slams Prosecutor's 'Deliberate Misconduct' During Alec Baldwin's Trial
Last month, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed Alec Baldwin's "Rust" trial with prejudice, which means that the "30 Rock" actor will no longer be held criminally responsible for the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. He is, however, still facing multiple civil lawsuits along with other "Rust" producers.
The New Mexico judge recently released a filing denouncing the misconduct committed by the prosecution, arguing that they “intentionally and deliberately withheld” key evidence from the defense, according to a filing obtained by The Hollywood Reporter.
Last Wednesday, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer said that prosecutors engaged in “willful and deliberate misconduct” that was so severe that the only remedy was to completely drop charges against the "Beetlejuice" actor.
'Rust' Judge Calls Out Lead Prosecutor
Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer took a moment in her filing to specifically address lead special prosecutor Kari Morrissey. She claimed that Morrissey failed to fulfill discovery obligations and gave "inconsistent" testimony about the evidence that was buried.
On the second day of the trial, a crime scene technician testified that evidence had been handed in after the trial of armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed. Gutierrez-Reed was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter earlier this year and was sentenced to 18 months behind bars.
Kari Morrissey had been involved in conversations with law enforcement to place the new evidence under a different case number, and thus was not turned over to the defense with the rest of the evidence for the "Rust" case.
Alec Baldwin's Trial Ended Abruptly On The Third Day
On July 12, what was supposed to mark the third day of testimony, the jury was dismissed and sent home for the weekend while the judge determined what the missing "Rust" evidence contained and how much the prosecution knew about it.
After Hannah Gutierrez-Reed's trial, retired Arizona police officer Troy Teske turned over live ammunition to the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Office. Teske claimed that the rounds he turned in had Starline brass casings with nickel primers that matched the bullet that killed Halyna Hutchins, according to Baldwin's legal team.
In a rare move, Kari Morrissey took the stand to explain the decision to file these bullets under a new case number. “There is absolutely nothing about the ammunition that Troy Teske had that has any evidentiary value in the Gutierrez case,” she told the judge under oath, claiming that the bullets did not match the round that killed Hutchins.
'Rust' Judge Examined The Bullets On Final Day of Trial
After the jury was dismissed, the controversial evidence was retrieved and inspected by Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer herself. Despite Kari Morrissey's claim, some of the rounds did appear to resemble those collected by law enforcement following the shooting.
In Wednesday’s filing, the judge declared that Morrissey “made the deliberate, intentional decision to place the Teske-supplied ammunition” under a different case number to bury the evidence, going on to speculate that the bullets could have absolved Baldwin.
“Evidence regarding the source of the live round that killed Ms. Hutchins, and additional information concerning how that live round arrived on the Rust set, likely affects the jury’s calculus of proximate cause and negligence by a third person or persons,” the judge explained in her ruling.
Alec Baldwin's Trial Dismissal Was The Only 'Appropriate Remedy,' Judge Finds
The evidence was not revealed until the second day of the trial, which meant that Baldwin's legal team did not have time to forensically analyze the bullets, as per the judge's filing. Judge Sommer wrote, “Given the State’s egregious discovery violations constituting misconduct and the false testimony elicited during the trial, dismissal with prejudice is the appropriate remedy.”
Kari Morrissey had been appointed to the state's case against Alec Baldwin and armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed after Andrea Reed, the former special prosecutor originally assigned to the case, stepped down. Special prosecutor Erlinda Johnson also resigned from the case only hours before the judge dismissed it with prejudice.
