Actor Alec Baldwin and armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed will be charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter for handling the gun that discharged on set, killing the cinematographer and the armorer who loaded the weapon in the 2021 fatal shooting in the New Mexico set of the film “Rust”.

In a statement, Baldwin’s lawyer, Luke Nikas, wrote “This decision distorts Halyna Hutchins’ tragic death and represents a terrible miscarriage of justice. Mr. Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun — or anywhere on the movie set. He relied on the professionals with whom he worked, who assured him the gun did not have live rounds. We will fight these charges, and we will win.”

Prosecutors stated they would charge Baldwin with two counts of involuntary manslaughter considering how he had the duty to ensure the gun and the ammunition was adequately checked. It should not have been pointed at anyone.

“You should not point a gun at someone you’re not willing to shoot,” District Attorney for Santa Fe County, Mary Carmack-Altwies stated in an interview.

Baldwin denies this, saying that while he was rehearsing he was told the weapon didn’t contain any live ammunition and was following directions on where to point the gun when it went off, resulting in the killing of the cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins. As a result, Matthew Hutchins, widower of Halyna Hutchins, described her death as a “terrible accident” in a statement at the time of the settlement. Under the agreement, Mr. Hutchins would become the executive producer of the film “Rust” and Alec Baldwin would finish the movie, which is to resume in January 2023.