Stony faced Hilaria Baldwin hours after husband Alec charged with involuntary manslaughter

Alec Baldwin’s wife Hilaria was seen on Thursday afternoon looking stony faced, hours after her husband learnt he was to be charged with involuntary manslaughter for the on-set shooting on his film Rust.

Hilaria, 39, was accompanied by several of their seven children as she arrived at their Manhattan apartment.

Alec was nowhere to be seen. His lawyers have said he plans to contest the charges, insisting that he cannot be held responsible for the prop guns on set, which were the responsibility of armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed.

She will also be charged, the Santa Fe district attorney announced on Thursday morning.

The 39-year-old ignored the waiting photographers as she left her home, in sparkling slippers

Hilaria, a yoga teacher, kept her head down amid the waiting photographers

She later returned to the house with several of their seven children

The Massachusetts-born wife of Alec Baldwin did her best to ignore the waiting photographers

The film’s assistant director, Dave Halls, pleaded guilty to negligence and received a six-month suspended sentence. 

Mary Carmack-Altwies, the Santa Fe prosecutor, tore into him Baldwin while announcing the charges, saying ‘an actor doesn’t get free pass’ as she insisted he did pull the trigger on the gun that killed Hutchins. 

Baldwin has vowed to fight the charges, calling them a  ‘terrible miscarriage of justice’. 

Despite prosecutors announcing the charges, it remains unclear how or why live rounds ever made it onto the set, and whether Baldwin pulled the trigger. He insists he did not – and has refuted an FBI report which claims he must have.  

He and Gutierrez-Reed are facing a maximum of 18 months in prison if convicted of involuntary manslaughter. 

If they’re also convicted of a firearm enhancement on that charge, they’ll face a mandatory five-year prison sentence. 

In a statement, Baldwin’s attorney said: ‘This decision distorts Halyna Hutchins’ tragic death and represents a terrible miscarriage of justice. Mr. Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun — or anywhere on the movie set. 

Mary Carmack-Altwies, the First Judicial District Attorney in New Mexico, said in an interview with CNN today: ‘An actor doesn’t get free pass just because they’re an actor.’ She vowed to take the case to trial 

The gun fired by Baldwin on the ‘Rust’ set shooting

‘He relied on the professionals with whom he worked, who assured him the gun did not have live rounds. We will fight these charges, and we will win.’  

Baldwin is seen in costume, covered with fake blood, in an image posted to Instagram 

Carmack-Altwies told CNN they concluded Baldwin did pull the trigger – and that he ran a ‘fast and loose set’ that was plagued with safety issues. 

‘There was such a lack of safety and safety standards on that set. There were live rounds on set, they were mixed in with dummy rounds. 

‘Nobody was checking those or at least they weren’t checking them consistently.

‘They somehow got loaded into a gun, handed off to Alec Baldwin, he didn’t check it, he didn’t do what he was supposed to do to make sure he was safe or make sure anyone else was safe. 

‘He pointed the gun at Halyna Hutchins and he pulled the trigger,’ she said.’ 

She said a ‘totality of the circumstances’ led to the decision, adding: ‘This was a really fast and loose set. And that nobody was doing their job.’ 

While it may have been an accident, she said Baldwin ‘doesn’t get a free pass’ because he’s a star. 

Halyna Hutchins was shot dead on October 21, 2021, by actor Alec Baldwin 

Assistant Director Dave Halls and Armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed. He has pleaded guilty to a single charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon and she has been charged with involuntary manslaughter 

‘Just because it’s an accident doesn’t mean it’s not criminal. They didn’t mean to do it, they didn’t have the intent to kill, but it happened anyway and it happened because of more than mere negligence.

‘We’ve talked to many actors, A-list and otherwise, that have said they always check their guns or they have someone check it in front of them. 

‘An actor doesn’t get free pass just because they’re an actor. Everyone’s equal under the law.’  

Gutierrez-Reed also vowed to fight the charges. 

In a statement, her attorneys said: ‘Hannah is, and has always been, very emotional and sad about this tragic accident. But she did not commit involuntary manslaughter. 

‘These charges are the result of a very flawed investigation, and an inaccurate understanding of the full facts. 

‘We intend to bring the full truth to light and believe Hannah will be exonerated of wrongdoing by a jury.’ 

Prosecutors say they are confident with the decision. It was welcomed by Hutchin’s family, who issued a statement through their attorney. 

‘We want to thank the Santa Fe Sheriff and the District Attorney for concluding their thorough investigation and determining that charges of involuntary manslaughter are warranted for the killing of Halyna Hutchins with conscious disregard for human life.

‘Our independent investigation also supports charges are warranted. It is a comfort to the family that, in New Mexico, no one is above the law.

‘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.’ 

In announcing the charges, special prosecutor Andrea Reeb said: ‘If any one of these three people—Alec Baldwin, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed or David Halls—had done their job, Halyna Hutchins would be alive today. It’s that simple.’ 

‘The evidence clearly shows a pattern of criminal disregard for safety on the ‘Rust’ film set.

‘In New Mexico, there is no room for film sets that don’t take our state’s commitment to gun safety and public safety seriously, ‘ she added. 

Prosecutors have not formally filed the charges – they will do so by the end of the month. 

‘There is a very clear process for pursuing justice in this case. We are committed to upholding the integrity of that process to ensure equal justice under the law,’ Carmack-Altwies added.

After that, the three defendants will have to make a first appearance but they will be allowed to do so virtually.  

Baldwin, 64, accidentally shot and killed Halyna Hutchins on the set of the Western movie in October 2021. 

In the 15 months that have passed, he emphatically denied responsibility for the accident, insisting he did not pull the trigger, despite a forensic FBI analysis of the prop gun he used concluding that he did. 

Baldwin was sued by Halyna’s widower, Matthew, in 2022 but settled the lawsuit with an undisclosed sum. 

He also made Matthew an executive producer on the film, which will resume production in Los Angeles. 

Prosecutors have resisted criticism of the long delay in making a decision. 

They say they were forced to wait for reports from both the FBI – which took ten months – and the local Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office – which took a year. 

There was no press conference to announce the decision today. 

Instead, the DA’s office issued a written statement to media which was also published online.