new mexico official

Four years after the “Rust” movie shooting, New Mexico officials have moved Alec Baldwin’s lawsuit alleging malicious prosecution to federal court.

This week’s filing is the latest twist in the long legal saga after the October 2021 on-set death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Baldwin, the 67-year-old star and a producer of the western film, had been facing a felony involuntary manslaughter charge for his role in Hutchins’ accidental shooting. But the judge overseeing Baldwin’s case abruptly dismissed the charge against him during his July 2024 trial after concluding that prosecutors withheld evidence that may have been helpful to his legal team.

Six months later, Baldwin sued New Mexico’s district attorney and special prosecutors, asserting malicious prosecution. The actor claimed he had been made a celebrity scapegoat because of the intense media pressure on local authorities to solve the high-profile case.

His lawsuit targeted New Mexico special prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey, 1st Judicial Dist. Atty. Mary Carmack-Altwies and Santa Fe County sheriff’s deputies, who led the investigation into Hutchins’ death.

The defendants have denied Baldwin’s allegations.

Baldwin’s wrongful prosecution suit was first filed in New Mexico court in Santa Fe.

On Tuesday, the defendants, including Morrissey, exercised their legal right to shift the case to federal court. The decision was made, in part, because “Mr. Baldwin brought federal civil rights claims in his lawsuit,” said Albuquerque attorney Luis Robles, who represents the defendants.

In addition, Baldwin does not live in New Mexico, where the case was filed.

Baldwin could object to the move and petition for it to be brought back to state court. On Wednesday, his team was not immediately available for comment.

A New Mexico judge had dismissed Baldwin’s malicious prosecution claims in July, citing 90 days of inactivity in the case. Baldwin’s legal team petitioned to get the case reinstated and the judge agreed to the request.

That prompted the defendants’ move to shift the case to the higher court.

During his Santa Fe trial last year, Baldwin’s lawyers had sought to turn the focus away from whether Baldwin pulled his gun’s trigger in the accidental shooting to where the lethal bullet came from.

Baldwin’s attorneys repeatedly accused law enforcement officers and prosecutors of bungling the case, including by allegedly hiding potential evidence — a batch of bullets that they said may have been related to the one that killed Hutchins.

A New Mexico judge has dismissed Alec Baldwin’s lawsuit alleging that he was maliciously prosecuted — one year after the actor-producer was cleared of a criminal charge in the “Rust” shooting death of the film’s cinematographer.

Baldwin alleged in a January lawsuit that he was the victim of overzealous New Mexico prosecutors and law enforcement. Baldwin claimed he had become the state’s celebrity scapegoat for the accidental on-set shooting of director of photography Halyna Hutchins.

The lawsuit came six months after a judge dismissed the involuntary manslaughter charge that Baldwin had been facing.

Former New Mexico 1st Judicial District Court Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer ended Baldwin’s trial last July after learning prosecutors withheld potential evidence from Baldwin’s legal team.

Baldwin’s subsequent suit targeted special prosecutor Kari T. Morrissey, 1st Judicial Dist. Atty. Mary Carmack-Altwies, Santa Fe County sheriff’s deputies and Santa Fe County Commissioners.

The defendants were “blinded by their desire to convict Alec Baldwin for all the wrong reasons, and at any cost,” his lawsuit claimed.

On Tuesday, a different judge dismissed Baldwin’s claims against the state, citing a lack of activity in the case.

Third Judicial Dist. Judge Casey B. Fitch wrote that it had been six months since any “significant action” had been filed in Baldwin’s case. Fitch gave the lawyers 30 days to file a motion to keep the lawsuit moving.

The ruling comes as legal proceedings in the “Rust” shooting saga are winding down.

In May, weapons handler Hannah Gutierrez was freed from prison after serving 14 months for her felony conviction of involuntary manslaughter in Hutchins’ October 2021 death on the New Mexico film set.

Baldwin’s case was dismissed a year ago by a Marlowe Sommer, who has since retired, on what was supposed to be the third day of the actor’s high-profile trial.

Instead, his defense attorneys raised serious questions over how New Mexico law enforcement officers and prosecutors handled evidence as they mounted their prosecution.

Baldwin’s attorneys accused the state of misconduct, pointing to a batch of unexamined bullets that a potential witness turned over to sheriff’s investigators in March 2024. Marlowe Sommer appeared furious over the handling of the evidence, which was not given to the defense, and dismissed the single charge against Baldwin.

Earlier this year, when Baldwin’s suit was filed, Morrissey said prosecutors had long been aware of Baldwin’s plans to sue New Mexico. She added: “We look forward to our day in court.”