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Alec Baldwin has asked a US judge to dismiss a five-year firearm sentencing enhancement in the charges against him, saying it is unconstitutionally based on a law passed after the shooting on the set of the film Rust.
Key points:
- Mr Baldwin faces different manslaughter penalties depending on what a jury decides to pursue
- His lawyers say he was charged under a version of a statute that did not exist at the time of the shooting
- Legal experts say he has a strong chance of a judge throwing out the optional penalty of a mandatory five years in prison
A firearm sentencing enhancement is a provision in criminal law that increases the penalties for a crime if a gun was used or involved.
"The prosecutors committed a basic legal error by charging Mr Baldwin under a version of the firearm-enhancement statute that did not exist on the date of the accident," a court filing from Mr Baldwin's attorneys said.
Mr Baldwin and Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the weapons supervisor on the set of the Western, were charged last month with felony involuntary manslaughter in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
Ms Hutchins died shortly after being shot during rehearsals at a ranch on the outskirts of Santa Fe, New Mexico, on October 21, 2021.
Mr Baldwin was pointing a pistol at Ms Hutchins when the gun went off, killing her and wounding the director, Joel Souza.
Ms Hutchins' parents and sister filed a lawsuit over the shooting on Thursday, after a similar suit filed by her husband and son was settled.
Mr Baldwin's attorneys also filed a motion on Tuesday to disqualify the special prosecutor in the case, asserting that her position as a state politician constitutionally prohibits her from holding any authority in a judicial capacity.
Mr Baldwin's legal team is mounting an aggressive legal fight against the charges before he has even made his initial court appearance, which is scheduled to take place by videoconference later this month.
The actor has not been arrested.
"Another day, another motion from Alec Baldwin and his attorneys in an attempt to distract from the gross negligence and complete disregard for safety on the Rust film set that led to Halyna Hutchins' death," Santa Fe district attorney's spokeswoman Heather Brewer wrote in an email.
She added that the prosecution team "will review all motions — even those given to the media before being served to the district attorney.
However, the district attorney's and the special prosecutor's focus will always remain on ensuring that justice is served and that everyone — even celebrities with fancy attorneys — is held accountable under the law."
Judge 'likely to toss' enhancement
The manslaughter charges against Mr Baldwin and Ms Gutierrez-Reed include two alternative standards and sets of penalties, and a jury can decide which to pursue, according to prosecutors.
One version would require proof of negligence, which is punishable by up to 18 months in jail and a $US5,000 ($7,237) fine under New Mexico law.
The second alternative is reckless disregard of safety "without due caution and circumspection." It carries a higher threshold of wrongdoing and includes the gun enhancement that could result in a mandatory five years in prison.
But legal experts said Mr Baldwin has a strong chance of seeing it thrown out.
"This is a violation of the ex post facto clause of the constitution," said Neama Rahmani, president of West Coast Trial Lawyers.
"The government can't pass a law and retroactively punish someone under that law. The judge is likely going to toss that enhancement and so Baldwin is just looking at a maximum sentence of 18 months in jail."
In court documents, the district attorney's office said reckless safety failures accompanied the film production from the outset, and that Mr Baldwin's "deviation from known standards, practices and protocol directly caused" Ms Hutchins' death.
They cited Mr Baldwin's failure as an actor to appear for mandatory firearms training prior to filming and his decision as a producer to work with Ms Gutierrez-Reed, who was an uncertified and inexperienced armourer.
Mr Baldwin's attorney Luke Nikas said when the charges were announced that they were "a terrible miscarriage of justice."
He said Mr Baldwin relied on the professionals with who he worked and "had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun."
AP