Alec Baldwin kills crew member on set with "prop gun"

[JohnO]

https://legalinsurrection.com/2021/1...-manslaughter/

Legal Analysis: Alec Baldwin Situation Beginning to Look a Lot Like Manslaughter

The more we learn about the facts of this case, within the context of New Mexico criminal law, the more this shooting looks increasingly like a crime—specifically, felony involuntary manslaughter.

RELEVANT FACTS ASSUMED TO BE ESTABLISHED
The relevant facts we’re presuming to be established for purposes of this analysis include:

That it was Alec Baldwin who was manipulating the gun that fired the projectile that killed Ms. Hutchins.
That the gun discharged because the trigger was depressed by Baldwin (and not because of some defect in the weapon).
That the muzzle of the weapon was directed towards Ms. Hutchins by Baldwin when it was fired (e.g., she was not killed by an unpredictable ricochet).
That the gun contained a live round, the bullet of which struck and killed Ms. Hutchins.
That Baldwin had the opportunity to inspect the weapon for live ammo before he directed it at Ms. Hutchins and pressed the trigger, killing her.
And, of course, that there was no justification for the shooting of Ms. Hutchins (e.g., this was not an act of lawful self-defense—which it clearly was not).

NEW MEXICO INVOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER STATUTE: § 30-2-3. MANSLAUGHTER.
The relevant New Mexico statute on involuntary manslaughter is § 30-2-3. Manslaughter, which addresses both voluntary and involuntary manslaughter. Our focus here, of course, is on involuntary manslaughter.
In the context of involuntary manslaughter, § 30-2-3 reads in relevant part:

Manslaughter is the unlawful killing of a human being without malice. … B. Involuntary manslaughter consists of manslaughter committed in the … commission of a lawful act that might produce death … without due caution and circumspection.

Ms. Hutchins is obviously killed. We have stipulated that the killing of Ms. Hutchins was not justified (e.g., it was “unlawful”) and without malice (without intent to cause harm), so that meets the conditions of the first sentence of the manslaughter statute, and satisfies the definition of manslaughter under New Mexico law.

The possibility of voluntary manslaughter appears to be off the table here, given the lack of evidence of a “sudden quarrel” or “heat of passion” required for that crime by § 30-2-3. So that leaves us to consider the possibility of involuntary manslaughter.

[Wondering Beard]

https://legalinsurrection.com/2021/1...-manslaughter/

"That Baldwin had the opportunity to inspect the weapon for live ammo before he directed it at Ms. Hutchins and pressed the trigger, killing her."


I'm not an attorney and law school was a long time ago, but it seems to me that the above is the sticky point. If it is not his job to inspect the weapon, if, moreover, the actor (any actor) is strongly discouraged, if not forbidden, to inspect the weapon then his responsibility would seem to evaporate. However, if the reports of plinking some time before the shooting are true (and it seems Baldwin wasn't part of these activities) and the weapon in question was used for that plinking, then whomever handed Baldwin the gun could be up for that involuntary manslaughter, or at least be the direct target of the likely civil suit.


Lots of "ifs" here; way too many to be sure of anything yet.

[Shawn Dodson]

An interesting observation in this morning's "The Flip Side" newsletter -

Alec Baldwin is likely to be held, at least in part, responsible. ‘If you’re capable of memorizing 120 pages of dialogue, you can memorize four lines of gun safety,’ special-effects and firearms expert Steve Wolf tells The Post. ‘If that scene required him to put the gun to his head and pull the trigger, I’m sure he would have taken a look inside the gun. Wouldn’t you?’…

[vcdgrips]

I posted this re Branca in the Chauvin thread. I re post having edited it to fit the Baldwin Incident:



"I only "know" what has been in the news re this case. Which means I "know" little. I have read none of the pleadings/interviews/police reports etc.

It is clear the Mr. Branca has strongly held views re the law of New Mexico involuntary manslaughter. I would note the following:

It is a matter of public record that Mr. Branca is licensed in Mass yet his office on his website is listed as being in Colo. That office address is the same as a UPS store in a strip mall.


Nowhere on the "about Andrew Branca" section of the website does Mr. Branca list in what jurisdiction(s) he is admitted, what jurisdictions he has tried or appealed cases nor does he mention any case citations of his successes. There is no mention of prior service as a prosecutor or defense attorney. The website does not list where he went to undergrad or law school. Linkedin does list his educational background https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-branca-6a1a1a9a



Indeed a search of Westlaw , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westlaw reveals no cases where Mr. Branca was an attorney of record at all, paying particular attention to the states of Colo and Mass, along with the applicable federal courts. As a QC check, I ran my name in the Western District of Missouri and the 8th Circuit (my primary geographic practice area and courts) and generated 300+ and 120+ "hits" respectively. I fully acknowledge that Westlaw is not nor does it claim to be a 100% comprehensive database.

I know some of you may have attended training where Mr. Branca was a speaker. If he provided details re his trial/appellate experiences, please share.

Mr. Branca may be spot on with every legal insight to date re this case.

How he comes to these conclusions, presumably based on his training and direct experience would be key."

YMMV/FWIW

[peterb]

"That Baldwin had the opportunity to inspect the weapon for live ammo before he directed it at Ms. Hutchins and pressed the trigger, killing her."


I'm not an attorney and law school was a long time ago, but it seems to me that the above is the sticky point. If it is not his job to inspect the weapon, if, moreover, the actor (any actor) is strongly discouraged, if not forbidden, to inspect the weapon then his responsibility would seem to evaporate. However, if the reports of plinking some time before the shooting are true (and it seems Baldwin wasn't part of these activities) and the weapon in question was used for that plinking, then whomever handed Baldwin the gun could be up for that involuntary manslaughter, or at least be the direct target of the likely civil suit.


Lots of "ifs" here; way too many to be sure of anything yet.

A comment from an actor on an unrelated project:

"I don't recall ever being handed a weapon that was not cleared in front of me — meaning chamber open, barrel shown to me, light flashed inside the barrel to make sure that it's cleared," Wright said. "Clearly, that was a mismanaged set."

From what I’m learning following this case, it is not the actor’s responsibility to make sure the weapon is properly configured for the scene. It is expected that crew members — including the armorer — will do their jobs correctly.

[Jim Watson]

whomever handed Baldwin the gun could be up for that involuntary manslaughter, or at least be the direct target of the likely civil suit.

Why sue a penniless flunky when you have a rich producer/star/killer to go after?

Seems Mr Branca is the only lawyer willing to speak out at length, so he is the only lawyer we have willing to speculate a bit.
The rest of the lawyers are wondering if they will get a chance to get on a high profile case like this.

I'd like to subpoena Keanu Reeves:
"Mr Reeves, we have shown that you have done the most shooting, both in live fire training and on filming location of any currently active actor.
Please say whether you personally inspect prop firearms to confirm that they do not contain live ammunition.
Please say if you have ever aimed a blank firing prop firearm directly at a performer or staff member."

But am I calling him for the plaintiff or the defense? I have read a lot of stuff about how careful and safety conscious he is, so maybe for the plaintiff.

[Glenn E. Meyer]

Insurance companies will be part of any pay out and settlement. I'd bet on a settlement before a trial. Baldwin probably has personal insurance as does the company.

[Wondering Beard]

Why sue a penniless flunky when you have a rich producer/star/killer to go after?

Maybe because through that person you can get at everyone else. Also, is that person a penniless flunky? we don't really know who it is yet; it could be another producer.

Seems Mr Branca is the only lawyer willing to speak out at length, so he is the only lawyer we have willing to speculate a bit.
The rest of the lawyers are wondering if they will get a chance to get on a high profile case like this.

I'd like to subpoena Keanu Reeves:
"Mr Reeves, we have shown that you have done the most shooting, both in live fire training and on filming location of any currently active actor.
Please say whether you personally inspect prop firearms to confirm that they do not contain live ammunition.
Please say if you have ever aimed a blank firing prop firearm directly at a performer or staff member."

But am I calling him for the plaintiff or the defense? I have read a lot of stuff about how careful and safety conscious he is, so maybe for the plaintiff.

There is likely going to be a battle of experts and all sorts of testimony regarding "best practices". The discovery process is likely to show a lot about how Hollywood works.

[Jim Watson]

There is likely going to be a battle of experts and all sorts of testimony regarding "best practices". The discovery process is likely to show a lot about how Hollywood works.

Yes, isn't it great?
Or maybe like turning over a rock to find the bugs and worms.

[corneileous]

What I’m curious about is why was there even any live rounds on that set to begin with? That’s what I read, was the gun had actual live rounds in it.

At least in the instance when Brandon Lee got killed on that movie The Crow, that was only because they forgot to take the primers out of the dummy rounds causing one of the bullets to actually come out of the casing and get stuck in the barrel and when they loaded the blanks in it, they pretty much had a live round in the 44mag that killed him.

Simple mistake but damn, how do you not notice it when you unloaded the dummy rounds out of the revolver one of the bullets was missing from one of the rounds and they didn’t even bother to see where that round was at whether it came out of the barrel or if it was stuck in the barrel before it loaded it with the blanks?


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