During a New Mexico Board of Finance meeting held Sept. 20, Carmack-Altwies mentioned crisis funding in overabundance of $635,000 to continue the investigation into the tragedy that occurred on Oct. 21 — when Baldwin, 64, was holding the weapon that discharged and killed 42-year-old cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injured chief Joel Souza.
tvguidetime.com
Baldwin has maintained that he didn’t pull the trigger.
“We are within weeks, on the off chance that not days, of receiving the final report from the sheriff’s office,” she shared, per a video recording of their meeting seen by Individuals.
Carmack-Altwies said that, while awaiting the final report, “it’s become apparent that we will be potentially charging somewhere in the range of one and four individuals with criminal charges, and each of those charges will probably include some variation of our manslaughter statute.”
In a letter to the New Mexico Board of Finance, obtained and published by Deadline, the district attorney’s office stated, “One of the potential defendants is notable film actor Alec Baldwin,” adding that the case “could expect up to 4 separate jury trials.”
On Monday, Baldwin’s lawyer, Luke Nikas of Quinn Emanuel, told Individuals in a statement: “A few media reports today draw false conclusions based on a letter from the Santa Fe Dist. Attorney.” “The DA has made clear that she has not gotten the sheriff’s report or made any decisions about who, if anyone, may be charged in this case,” the statement continued.
“And during my communications with the DA’s office only half a month ago, after the August 30 funding demand was submitted, I was informed that it would be premature to discuss the case because they had not yet evaluated the record or deliberated about their charging decision.”
“It is irresponsible to report otherwise,” the statement concluded. “The DA’s office should be given the space to audit this matter without unwarranted speculation and innuendo.”
At last week’s meeting, Carmack-Altwies noticed that crime cases are the most “complicated and hostile,” requiring her office to employ more staff.
“These cases seem to be too big for simply my office to handle,” she explained.
“We want an almost full-time attorney and someone who is extremely capable on complex cases and exceptionally knowledgeable about litigation.”
She added the financial help could also potentially be utilized to “retain specialists” who specialize in aspects, for example, firearms, armorer conventions and safety conventions on film sets.
The board of finance later approved $317,750 for the just-in-case account mentioned by the district attorney.
The Principal Judicial District Attorney’s office didn’t immediately return Individuals’ solicitation for additional remark.
The Santa Fe Area Sheriff’s investigators got the FBI’s finished forensic reports on Aug. 2, authorities confirmed in a public statement last month.
Additionally, analysts are still in the process of “obtaining, processing, and disclosing Alec Baldwin’s phone records.”
Once analysts finish reviewing the New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator reports and the phone records, the final sheriff’s office investigation case document will be forwarded to the District Attorney for audit and final charging decisions, the public statement added.
According to a FBI forensic report released last month, the pistol at the focal point of this case — when “intact and functional” — “couldn’t be made to discharge without a draw of the trigger” except if the hammer was “de-positioned on a loaded chamber” and “the hammer was struck straightforwardly.”
Nikas, Baldwin’s attorney, said in a statement to ABC News that the FBI report is “being misconstrued.”
He added, “The weapon shot in testing only one time — without having to pull the trigger — when the hammer was pulled back and the firearm broke in two better places.
The FBI was unable to discharge the firearm in any earlier test, in any event, while pulling the trigger, because it was in such unfortunate condition.”
“The critical report is the one from the medical examiner, who concluded that this was a tragic accident,” added Nikas.
“This is the third time the New Mexico authorities have found that Alec Baldwin had no authority or information on the allegedly unsafe conditions on the set, that he was told by the person in charge of safety on the set that the weapon was ‘cold,’ and accepted the firearm was safe.”
A posthumous report from the medical examiners obtained by Individuals noticed that “survey of available law enforcement reports showed no compelling demonstration that the firearm was intentionally loaded with live ammunition on set.”
“Based on all available information, including the absence of clear intent to cause harm or death, the manner of death is best classified as accident,” the report concluded.
Last December, Baldwin said in an interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos that he “didn’t pull the trigger” on the firearm during the on-set tragedy. ”
The trigger wasn’t pulled,” he said at the time. “I could never point a weapon at someone and pull the trigger on them, never.”
— Newsmax (@newsmax) September 27, 2022