Alec Baldwin to face civil trial over movie set death

A judge in New Mexico dismissed an involuntary manslaughter case with prejudice against the actor in 2024, after finding that prosecutors allegedly withheld potentially exculpatory evidence, but a new civil case has been given the green light.

According to court documents obtained by DailyMail.com, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Maurice Leiter has ruled that a civil lawsuit brought by Rust gaffer Serge Svetnoy will proceed to determine if Baldwin actually negligently fired the loaded revolver.

Baldwin has always insisted he had no knowledge of the live rounds and has also denied ever pulling the trigger.

Svetnoy is suing Baldwin and Rust's production company for inflicting emotional distress on him due to alleged negligence from the production and Baldwin, who was a producer on the film.

Judge Leiter said in the court documents: "A reasonable jury could find that Mr. Baldwin recklessly disregarded the probability that pointing a gun in the direction of someone, with the finger on the trigger, would cause emotional distress."

In a statement to Daily Mail, Svetnoy's lawyer, John M Upton, said they were "pleased with the court's decision to deny the motions for summary judgment brought by Rust Movie Productions and Alex Baldwin".

He went on: "These rulings enable our client to present his case at a jury trial, now scheduled for October of this year. He looks forward to finally having his day in court on this long-pending matter."

The trial was originally due to begin in May but lawyers for Baldwin and Svetnoy requested a continuance as they work on negotiating a settlement.

The judge went on to set the trial for October 12, unless a settlement is reached.

However, he expressed his concern about the length the case has been dragging on. 

According to Variety, he said: "I'm a little concerned about this case going on and on and on when it should be coming to a resolution."