Alec Baldwin and his company El Dorado Pictures want a judge to re-impose a stay on a civil suit filed by a “Rust” crew member stemming from the accidental fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins with a bullet fired by the actor/producer from a prop weapon.
In August, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge A. Maurice Leiter lifted a temporary hold on plaintiff Serge Svetnoy’s case that the judge had installed on Jan. 4. At the time, Leiter found that Baldwin’s deposition testimony could have been used against him in the criminal case in New Mexico in which Baldwin was charged with involuntary manslaughter in Hutchins’ death.
However, on July 12, a New Mexico judge dismissed the criminal case against Baldwin in mid-trial on grounds that the prosecution had suppressed evidence. But since the prosecutor is appealing the judge’s ruling, Baldwin’s attorneys state in new court papers that Svetnoy’s lawsuit, set for trial May 12, 2025, should once again be paused.
“It is highly unlikely that the criminal appeal will be resolved sufficiently before the civil trial date to allow (Svetnoy) to depose Baldwin, even if he proceeded with discovery from the other defendants,” Baldwin’s attorneys argue in their pleadings filed Nov. 5 in advance of a Dec. 6 hearing. “And given the Baldwin defendants’ role in this case, it makes no sense to take discovery in such stages.”
Svetnoy claimed in his original suit filed in November 2021 that the shooting on the film’s set “was caused by the negligent acts and omissions” of the multiple defendants in his suit. In a subsequent an amended complaint, Svetnoy added causes of action for assault and intentional infliction of emotional distress against the 66-year-old Baldwin only.
Svetnoy alleges Baldwin “willfully disregarded the laws of New Mexico when he acted as alleged herein with the loaded Colt revolver” and says he felt the bullet whiz by him and that gunpowder and other residual materials struck the right side of his face.
As a result of Baldwin’s “pointing and subsequently discharging the gun towards him, (Svetnoy) has suffered compensable damages including … physical injury and extreme and severe emotional distress,” according to the amended suit, which further states that the actor’s actions were taken with “utter disregard” for the plaintiff’s safety.
Svetnoy was among the first “Rust” crew members to publicly speak out about the shooting that killed the 42-year-old Hutchins while Baldwin was helping to prepare camera angles on the film’s set near Santa Fe. The weapon, which was supposed to contain only blank rounds, discharged a lead bullet that struck Hutchins in the chest then lodged in the shoulder of director Joel Souza, now 51.
Svetnoy wrote on social media days later that he witnessed the shooting and comforted the bleeding Hutchins until paramedics arrived. He says he immediately deemed the shooting an act of negligence, saying armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed and assistant director David Halls both failed to check the weapon before declaring it safe and passing it to Baldwin.