Alec Baldwin's involuntary manslaughter trial in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins is due to begin in the coming days.
Jury selection is due to take place on 9 July with Baldwin's trial set to begin on 10 July.
In October 2021, the Hollywood actor was rehearsing a scene for the western film Rust, in which he was starring and producing, when the prop gun he was holding fired a live round. The bullet fatally shot cinematographer Hutchins and injured the film’s director Joel Souza.
Baldwin has maintained that he pulled back the gun's hammer but did not pull the trigger and has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter.
In April of this year, the film's armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who was responsible for the weapons on the set, was sentenced to 18 months in prison after being found guilty of involuntary manslaughter. She is appealing the jury's verdict.
Baldwin would face a maximum of 18 months in prison if he is convicted at trial.
Here is a timeline of events leading up to Baldwin's involuntary manslaughter trial.
21 October, 2021
On Thursday 21 October 2021, cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot and director Joel Souza was injured on the set of the western film Rust at Bonanza Creek Ranch near Santa Fe when the prop gun Alec Baldwin was holding discharged a live round during a rehearsal for a scene.
Following the shooting, police arrived on the scene and began investigating the series of events leading up to the incident.
22 October, 2021
Baldwin posted a statement on Twitter calling the death a "tragic accident" and saying he is "fully cooperating" with the police investigation.
24 October, 2021
Three days after the fatal shooting of Hutchins, Rust’s producers sent out a letter to the crew announcing that they would be pausing production for the foreseeable future.
"Although our hearts are broken, and it is hard to see beyond the horizon, this is, at the moment, a pause rather than an end. The spirit that brought us all to this special place remains," the producers said.
17 November, 2021
The film’s script supervisor, Mamie Mitchell, filed a civil suit claiming that Baldwin and others involved with producing the film failed to keep the set safe.
1 December, 2021
In his first interview following the shooting, Baldwin told ABC News that he "didn’t pull the trigger" on the firearm and said he had "no idea" how a live bullet got onto the set of the film.
12 January, 2022
Rust’s armoror Hannah Gutierrez-Reed filed a lawsuit alleging that the ammunition boxes supplied by the prop provider "failed to state" that "the contents contained both dummy and live ammunition".
15 February, 2022
The family of Hutchins filed a wrongful death lawsuit, alleging reckless behavior and cost-cutting by Baldwin and others led to Hutchins' death.
20 April, 2022
The New Mexico Environment Department's Occupational Health and Safety Bureau issued Rust Movie Productions a "willful" citation, including a $136,793 penalty, the maximum fine allowable, for failures that led to Hutchins' "avoidable death".
14 August, 2022
FBI testing of the firearm used in the shooting found it could not be fired without pulling the trigger while the gun was cocked, according to a forensics report.
20 August, 2022
In an interview with CNN, Baldwin placed responsibility for Hutchins’ death on Gutierrez-Reed, the film armorer and props assistant, and on first assistant director David Halls.
5 October, 2022
The family of Hutchins and Baldwin announced they had reached an undisclosed settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit filed against the actor and others. As part of the settlement, Matthew Hutchins, Halyna's husband, took over as executive producer of Rust.
27 October, 2022
Santa Fe County sheriff investigators handed their report to Santa Fe First Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies to decide whether to press criminal charges.
19 January, 2023
Santa Fe District Attorney Carmack-Altwies said she would charge Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed with two counts each of involuntary manslaughter.
31 January, 2023
Alec Baldwin and Hannah Gutierrez-Reed were officially charged with involuntary manslaughter for the fatal shooting.
23 February, 2023
Baldwin pleaded not guilty to manslaughter charges.
24 February, 2023
The New Mexico Environment Department's Occupational Health and Safety Bureau and Rust Movie Productions reached a settlement over the fine issued in April 2022, with the production company agreeing to pay $100,000.
29 March, 2023
District Attorney Carmack-Altwies stepped away from prosecuting the case and appointed New Mexico attorneys Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis to serve as special prosecutors.
31 March, 2023
First assistant director David Halls, who had agreed to plead guilty to negligent use of a deadly weapon, received a suspended sentence and six months of probation.
20 April 2023
New Mexico special prosecutors dismissed the charges against Baldwin, citing "new facts" in the case but said the charges may be refiled.
9 August, 2023
Gutierrez Reed pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter and tampering with evidence.
19 January, 2024
Baldwin was charged with involuntary manslaughter for the second time.
31 January, 2024
Baldwin pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter charges for the second time.
22 February, 2024
The trial of film armorer Gutierrez-Reed began.
6 March, 2024
Gutierrez-Reed was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter after jurors deliberated for nearly three hours. She was acquitted on a charge of evidence tampering.
15 April, 2024
The judge sentenced Gutierrez-Reed to the maximum 18 months in prison. Her defence lawyer has since filed an appeal notice.
24 May, 2024
New Mexico judge Mary Marlowe Sommer denied Baldwin’s motion to dismiss the involuntary manslaughter indictment, ruling that the case had been properly presented to a grand jury.
21 June, 2024
Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer denied a defense motion asking the court to dismiss the involuntary manslaughter indictment. The defense had argued the shooting death of Hutchins was an accident and Baldwin is "not criminally liable".
28 June, 2024
The judge denied a motion to dismiss the involuntary manslaughter indictment related to the gun that was destroyed during the FBI's forensic testing.
9 July, 2024
Jury selection for Baldwin’s trial is set to take place.
10 July, 2024
Baldwin’s trial for involuntary manslaughter is set to begin and is estimated to last eight days, between 10-19 July, the judge said.
The US star will face a maximum of 18 months in prison if convicted after trial.
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