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On Wednesday, Alec Baldwin appeared in court with his wife, Hilaria, and his brother, Stephen, to deliver opening statements in his long-awaited “Last” manslaughter trial.
Prosecutor Erlinda Johnson testified first, showing the gun that was fired that fateful day and arguing that Alec “violated basic rules of firearm safety.”
Johnson told the court, “When someone plays house with a real gun in a real workplace and that role-play violates basic rules of firearms safety, people’s lives are put at risk and someone could be killed. The evidence will show that the person who played house with a real gun and violated basic rules of firearms safety was the defendant, Alexander Baldwin.”
Baldwin’s lawyers countered, arguing that the evidence shows “real bullets could never have been on a movie set.”
They said Halina Hutchins’ death is an “unspeakable tragedy” but that Baldwin committed no crime.
The defense placed responsibility on the film’s cinematographer and first assistant director, saying, “This is an unspeakable tragedy, but Alec Baldwin committed no crime. He was an actor, he was acting, he was playing the role of Harlan Rust. An actor playing a role is capable of deadly acts. These ‘iron rules’ are not ironclad on a movie set.”
The big question is whether Baldwin will take the stand.
Extra recently spoke with ABC News legal counsel Brian Buckmire, who said, “I don’t think it would be wise for Alec Baldwin to testify, because what is he going to say to further his case? He doesn’t know how live ammunition got on to the set, he doesn’t know how the bullets got loaded into the gun, so what can he add other than to be cross-examined and possibly torn to pieces? So, to me, it’s just not worth it to testify.”
Baldwin’s trial is expected to last nine days. If convicted, he faces 18 months in prison.
Baldwin maintained his innocence, telling George Stephanopoulos in his only interview since the incident, “Someone is responsible for what happened. I can’t tell you who it is, but I know it wasn’t me.”