Alec Baldwin left off 'Rust' witness list for armorer's trial over fatal shooting
Alec Baldwin will not be called to testify against "Rust" armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed, according to a witness list filed Dec. 14.
Gutierrez Reed is facing charges of involuntary manslaughter and evidence tampering after a gun she handled on the set of "Rust" fired, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on Oct. 21, 2021. Baldwin had been holding the gun at the time of the accidental discharge.
Baldwin being left off the state's witness list in the upcoming trial of Gutierrez Reed shows an "official decision" has not been made about whether to bring new charges against the actor, legal experts told Fox News Digital.
The state filed the 13th amended witness list on Dec. 14. Baldwin has notably been left off all 13 lists, while others such as assistant director Dave Halls, director Joel Souza and other crew members will take the stand once Gutierrez Reed's trial begins on Feb. 21, according to the document obtained by Fox News Digital.
"The current witness list is the thirteenth amended witness list submitted by the state, and it is my understanding that Baldwin has not been on any of the prior lists," Kate Mangels, partner at Kinsella Holley Iser Kump Steinsapir LLP (KHIKS), explained. "But the fact that he isn’t on the witness list does indicate that an official decision has not been made."
"If the state had officially determined Baldwin would not be charged or had come to an agreement with him like they did with the first assistant director, Baldwin would likely be on their list."
The prosecution did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Baldwin also could have alerted the prosecution that he planned to invoke his right not to incriminate himself, the legal experts explained.
"I’m not surprised that Baldwin isn’t on the state’s witness list. It means one of two things," former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani told Fox News Digital. "The state plans to indict him. Co-defendants usually aren’t called as witnesses unless they are given some sort of deal to testify."
"Or Baldwin’s lawyers have told prosecutors that Baldwin will plead the Fifth if subpoenaed," he added. "It’s considered improper to call a witness just so they invoke their right to remain silent."
If Baldwin were to plead the 5th, his testimony would not offer any "useful" information for the state's case against Gutierrez Reed, according to Mangels.
"Because Baldwin could potentially be re-charged, he would likely assert his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent in response to any questions relevant to Gutierrez Reed’s matter," she noted. "Therefore, it is extremely unlikely that his testimony would offer any information useful to the state."
"The state likely feels that they will be able to get enough testimony about Baldwin’s role as it relates to Gutierrez Reed’s role from others in the case," Mangels continued. "They can then avoid going through the process of calling Baldwin to the witness stand just to have him assert his Fifth Amendment rights."
A representative for Baldwin did not respond to Fox News Digital's immediate request for comment.
ALEC BALDWIN'S ‘RUST’ ASSISTANT DIRECTOR SENTENCED IN FATAL SHOOTING OF HALYNA HUTCHINS
Baldwin was originally charged with involuntary manslaughter in January. However, special prosecutors Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis announced the state was dropping Baldwin's charges in April as "new facts" had been revealed that required further investigation. In their motion to dismiss, the special prosecutors noted that the further investigation and forensic analysis required could not be completed before Baldwin's preliminary hearing, which had been scheduled for May 3.
The case has since been closed in the First Judicial District Court of New Mexico, but Baldwin could potentially still face new charges in the future.
In October, Morrissey and Lewis announced they planned to convene a grand jury to decide if new charges should be brought against Baldwin. "After extensive investigation over the past several months, additional facts have come to light that we believe show Mr. Baldwin has criminal culpability in the death of Halyna Hutchins and the shooting of Joel Souza," the New Mexico special prosecutors told Fox News Digital at the time.
"We believe the appropriate course of action is to permit a panel of New Mexico citizens to determine from here whether Mr. Baldwin should be held over for criminal trial."
However, it is unclear if the grand jury has been convened since the announcement due to the traditionally secret nature of the court proceeding.
WATCH: ‘RUST’ MOVIE VIDEO SHOWS ALEC BALDWIN PRACTICING CROSS DRAW BEFORE HALYNA HUTCHINS SHOOTING
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Baldwin still faces a handful of civil lawsuits, including one brought by "Rust" script supervisor Mamie Mitchell, along with another by Hutchins' mother, father and sister. The plaintiffs are represented by attorney Gloria Allred.
"Mr. Baldwin should know that we remain committed to fighting and winning for our clients and holding him accountable for pointing a loaded gun at Halyna Hutchins, pulling the trigger, and killing her," Allred said in a statement. "Mr. Baldwin may pretend that he is not responsible for pulling the trigger and ejecting a live bullet which ended Halyna’s life."
"He can run to Montana and pretend that he is just an actor in a wild west movie but, in real life, he cannot escape from the fact that he had a major role in a tragedy which had real life consequences for Halyna, her mother, father, sister, and co-worker," the statement continued.
WATCH: ALEC BALDWIN COULD BE CHARGED AGAIN IN FATAL ‘RUST’ SHOOTING
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Amid the legal drama, Baldwin, the cast and crew finished filming the "Rust" movie in May.
"It’s been a long and difficult road. But we reach the end of the trail today. Congratulations to Joel, Bianca and the entire cast and crew," Baldwin said, referring to Joel Souza, the original director of the western, and Bianca Cline, the new cinematographer.
"Nothing less than a miracle," he added.