After having his involuntary manslaughter case dismissed, Alec Baldwin has indicated he may sue those responsible for withholding evidence, which led Judge Mary Marlow Sommer to abruptly end the trial. Prosecutor Kari Morrissey and Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza are accused of failing to disclose the existence of bullets that Sommer later ruled should have been included as evidence.
Earlier this week, Baldwin’s lawyers sent letters to Morrissey and Mendoza, requesting they preserve all documents related to the matter. According to Reuters, this step was taken to ensure that no evidence would be missing if “further litigation” were pursued.
The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office confirmed receipt of the letter from Baldwin’s legal team, while Morrissey declined to comment. It remains unclear whether a lawsuit will be filed against either or both parties.
The missing evidence pertained to the source of the rounds involved in the shooting, submitted by Troy Teske, who claimed to be a friend of the stepfather of Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the Rust set armorer. Gutierrez-Reed is currently serving 18 months for her role in handling the gun that Baldwin fired, resulting in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
Teske handed the rounds to the sheriff’s office shortly after the incident, but they were filed under a different case number by the crime scene technician. Morrissey decided not to enter the ammunition into evidence, as she believed it did not resemble the rounds used on set. However, Sommer disagreed, noting that at least one round looked similar to those fired by Baldwin.
Former assistant prosecuting attorney Erlinda Johnson told Reuters she had provided other documents to the defense when Morrissey refused to do so but only learned about the ammunition when the rest of the court did. Johnson resigned shortly before Sommer’s ruling.
“As prosecutors, we have obligations to disclose all evidence,” Johnson said. “We owe a duty not only to the people but to the defendants accused of crimes as well.”