Alec Baldwin’s lawsuit accusing Santa Fe officials of malicious prosecution and civil rights violations for bringing criminal charges against him in an accidental shooting death on the set of Rust was fired.
U.S. District Judge Kea Riggs ruled Wednesday that the prosecutor in the case was entitled to immunity, while recognizing a “very disturbing picture of malicious prosecution.”
“Sometimes it is better not to repair the harm caused by an allegedly dishonest prosecutor than to subject those who attempt to do their duty to the constant fear of retaliation,” Riggs wrote. “This is one of those times.”
Baldwin had alleged that prosecutors intentionally withheld evidence that could vindicate him and sought to indict him for political purposes. He alleged that Santa Fe District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies and special prosecutor Kari Morrissey manipulated evidence and obtained false testimony in an effort to scapegoat him to secure a conviction.
The filing comes after Baldwin’s trial ended abruptly and stunningly, following an unexpected and labyrinthine hearing into how police and prosecutors handled a handful of bullets. He was retired Arizona police officer Troy Teske, who had turned over a collection of live ammunition to the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Office. The bullets were not inventoried with the Rust affair, effectively hiding the evidence from Baldwin and gunsmith Hannah Gutierrez-Reed.
The judge later concluded that the prosecution had “intentionally and deliberately concealed” key evidence from the defense. Morrissey, the court concluded, not only repeatedly failed to meet her discovery obligations, but also gave “inconsistent” testimony regarding the evidence she had suppressed.
At the heart of Wednesday’s dismissal: the foreclosure of proceedings against the prosecutors because the alleged misconduct fell within their duties. Riggs concluded that Morrissey has “absolute immunity from prosecution.”
That immunity, the court said, covers Morrissey’s withholding of firearms analyses, one of which indicated there were unexplained tool marks on the trigger mechanism of the unloaded firearm, failure to disclose evidence and perjury at trial. While acquiescing in substantiated allegations against “dishonest or malicious government officials,” Riggs said the functioning of the justice system takes priority.
“The doctrine of absolute immunity from prosecution is only valid if it applies to difficult cases, sometimes masking acts of serious misconduct,” the judge wrote.
Next month, The Trial of Alec Baldwina documentary focusing on the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, the media storm that followed and the actor’s years-long legal battle that threatened to send him to prison, is hitting theaters.
A representative for Baldwin did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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