Alec Baldwin has broken his silence following the shock dismissal of his Rust shooting case.
The actor was on trial for the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, who was fatally shot while on set in October 2021.
However, the charges were sensationally dropped on Friday after a New Mexico judge ruled there had been “errors in the handling” of some of the evidence.
Baldwin cried in the Santa Fe courtroom when the news was announced and has since taken to Instagram to address the matter.
“There are too many people who have supported me to thank them now,” she wrote on Saturday.
Alec Baldwin breaks his silence after the shock dismissal of his Rust shooting case
‘To all of you, you will never know how much I appreciate your kindness towards my family.’
The extraordinary decision to quash his trial came after a day-long hearing without a jury present over bullets that should have been brought to light.
Baldwin’s lawyers claimed they were “hidden” from him and “buried” in another file.
The issue had marred Baldwin’s trial, and he pleaded not guilty to two counts of involuntary manslaughter after being accused of negligence for accidentally firing live ammunition on set.
Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, 26, a gunsmith on the set of Rust, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter earlier this year.
Alec Baldwin broke down in tears and hugged his wife Hilaria as his manslaughter case was sensationally dismissed.
Matthew Hutchins, who was married to victim Halyna Hutchins for 16 years (pictured with their son Andros), said in a statement after the shocking ruling that he looks forward to “holding Mr. Baldwin accountable for his actions.”
She was later jailed for 18 months, a sentence Baldwin would have faced if found guilty.
Baldwin’s case was dismissed with prejudice, meaning prosecutors cannot bring the same charges against him in the case and the trial is permanently dismissed.
Though he has pending civil court cases, Baldwin seemed relieved to celebrate the dismissal of criminal charges in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in October 2021.
The 66-year-old took to the streets of Santa Fe, New Mexico, hours after the decision was read to cheers from fans.
However, Hutchins’ widow and father of her son Matthew Hutchins has said she hopes Baldwin will still be held accountable for his actions.
The extraordinary turn of events came after a chaotic hearing on Friday.
Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer asked that the bullets be brought to the courtroom where, in an unusual scene, she put on gloves and inspected them herself.
Baldwin’s attorney, Luke Nikas, told the court that the bullets were brought to police in Santa Fe in March of this year by former police officer Troy Teske, who claimed they were the same type used to shoot Hutchins.
Baldwin’s attorney, Nikas, claimed prosecutors “buried” the bullets as evidence by giving them a different case number than the main Rust investigation.
As a result, when Baldwin’s attorneys went to police to see all of Rust’s ammunition in April, they were not shown any, in violation of the rules of evidence.