sa国际传媒官网网页入口

A jury in Santa Fe will begin weighing testimony this week to determine whether actor Alec Baldwin is criminally responsible for a 2021 shooting death on the set of the Western movie 鈥淩ust.鈥�

The death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins from a bullet fired by a gun in Baldwin鈥檚 hand has been at the center of a legal battle for more than 3陆 years.

Baldwin, who faces a charge of involuntary manslaughter in Hutchins鈥� death, is expected to be sitting at the defense table Monday when jury selection begins in Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer鈥檚 courtroom.

Testimony could begin as early as Wednesday in New Mexico鈥檚 biggest-ever celebrity trial. The trial is scheduled through July 19.

Some 40 news organizations are expected to descend on the 1st Judicial District Courthouse in Santa Fe for the trial, said Barry Massey, spokesman for the Administrative Office of the Courts.

At least a dozen television news networks will have a conspicuous presence on the east plaza of the Santa Fe Courthouse throughout the trial. ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Telemundo, Fox and NewsNation and international networks BBC, Sky News, ITN, Japan-based Fuji and Australia鈥檚 Nine Network have registered to cover the trial.

CourtTV will stream the trial at .

Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer of the movie, was rehearsing a scene on the set at Bonanza Creek Ranch near Santa Fe when the gun he was holding discharged, fatally shooting Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza.

Information soon emerged that several members of the camera crew had resigned the night before the shooting, citing safety concerns 鈥� among them, that two accidental blank rounds had been discharged on the set in recent days.

The movie鈥檚 armorer, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, 27, who had previously supervised weapons for only one movie, was convicted on March 6 of involuntary manslaughter in Hutchins鈥� death following a closely watched trial in Santa Fe.

On April 14, Marlowe Sommer sentenced Gutierrez Reed, who was 24 at the time of the shootings, to the maximum 18 months in prison. 鈥淵ou alone turned a safe weapon (into) a lethal weapon,鈥� the judge told her at sentencing.

Baldwin also faces a maximum sentence of 18 months in prison if a jury finds him guilty of the same charge.

Gutierrez Reed testimony

Both prosecutors and defense attorneys have identified Gutierrez Reed as a potential witness in Baldwin鈥檚 trial.

On Wednesday, Marlowe Sommer ordered the 鈥淩ust鈥� armorer transferred from the Western New Mexico Correctional Facility in Grants to the Santa Fe Sheriff鈥檚 Office 鈥渢o provide testimony鈥� in Baldwin鈥檚 trial.

But it remains unclear whether she will agree to answer questions. The 鈥淩ust鈥� armorer has repeatedly followed the advice of her attorney, Jason Bowles, to claim her constitutional right to remain silent so as not to incriminate herself.

Marlowe Summer last month denied a request by prosecutors that Gutierrez Reed be given immunity from prosecution to testify at Baldwin鈥檚 trial.

In a hearing last month, special prosecutor Kari Morrissey called Gutierrez Reed 鈥渁n incredibly important witness鈥� and said she may still call Gutierrez Reed as a witness.

In a June 6 pre-trial interview, Gutierrez Reed refused to answer most of the questions Morrissey asked her about Baldwin鈥檚 actions on the movie set.

Gutierrez Reed currently faces a felony charge of unlawfully carrying a firearm into a liquor establishment, the Matador bar in Santa Fe, on Oct. 1, 2021.

Dispute over firearm

Baldwin has maintained that he did not pull the trigger of the prop Colt .45 revolver he was holding on Oct. 21, 2021, during a rehearsal on the movie set. The gunshot killed Hutchins and injured Souza.

In December 2021, Baldwin told ABC鈥檚 George Stephanopoulos that he did not pull the trigger of the gun he was holding when it fired.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 pull the trigger,鈥� Baldwin said during the interview. 鈥淚 would never point a gun at anyone and pull the trigger at them.鈥�

Baldwin鈥檚 claim, made just weeks after the fatal shooting, put the condition of the firearm at the center of the case, where it remains on the eve of the trial.

Only last month, Marlowe Sommer rejected a motion to dismiss the case filed by Baldwin鈥檚 attorneys, who argued that the FBI 鈥渄estroyed鈥� the firearm during a forensic test.

Baldwin鈥檚 attorneys argued in a June 24 hearing that the Santa Fe Sheriff鈥檚 Office was aware of Baldwin鈥檚 claim and asked the FBI to determine whether the gun would fire without pulling the trigger.

鈥淭he gun is central,鈥� said Baldwin鈥檚 attorney, John Bash. 鈥淭he state knew that Mr. Baldwin had said he did not pull the trigger at the time they ordered the destructive testing.鈥�

Law enforcement and prosecutors believe Baldwin pulled the trigger, Bash said.

鈥淭he police themselves, by their conduct, indicated that the evidence could form a basis for exonerating the defendant before they destroyed it,鈥� Bash said. 鈥淎nd they destroyed it anyway.鈥�

An FBI weapons expert testified in Gutierrez Reed鈥檚 trial that the revolver was fully functional when it arrived at the FBI laboratory.

FBI forensic examiner Bryce Ziegler testified that he struck the fully cocked gun with a mallet to determine if it would fire without a trigger pull. The test broke the weapon鈥檚 trigger mechanism, causing it to fire, he told jurors.

Prosecutors dismissed an earlier involuntary manslaughter charge against Baldwin in April 2023 after they were told that the gun may have been modified before the shooting.

Prosecutors last year hired Arizona firearms expert Lucien C. Haag to perform additional testing on the prop revolver.

Special prosecutor Erlinda Johnson responded at the June 24 hearing that Baldwin鈥檚 attorneys never asked investigators to keep the gun intact during the FBI testing.

Johnson also argued that Baldwin鈥檚 attorneys hadn鈥檛 shown that the gun had exculpatory value, meaning it could be used to demonstrate Baldwin鈥檚 innocence.

Ziegler testified that the gun was in working order when the FBI received it and that he had successfully test-fired the gun 12 times, Johnson told the judge.

鈥淭here was nothing apparently wrong with this gun,鈥� she said.

Ziegler and Haag are both identified as witnesses for the prosecution.

Also listed as a witness is Zachariah Sneesby, a 鈥淩ust鈥� boom operator standing nearby at the time of the shooting. Morrissey said in a recent court filing that Sneesby said in a pre-trial interview that he saw Baldwin pull the trigger of the prop gun.

Other expected witnesses include Souza, the 鈥淩ust鈥� director who survived a gunshot, and David Halls, the movie鈥檚 safety coordinator, who pleaded guilty to one count of negligent use of a deadly weapon and was sentenced last year to six months probation.

Gutierrez Reed鈥檚 trial also never conclusively answered the question of how live rounds found their way onto the set.

Prosecutors told jurors at Gutierrez Reed鈥檚 trial that the armorer brought live rounds on the movie set and loaded one into the prop gun Baldwin was holding when it fired.

Baldwin said in his interview with Stephanopoulos that he had no idea how a live bullet found its way into the prop gun.

鈥淪omeone put a live bullet in a gun 鈥� a bullet that wasn鈥檛 even supposed to be on the property,鈥� he said.