Ukrainian family of cinematographer sue Baldwin over 'Rust' shooting

By Andrew Hay

(Reuters) -The Ukrainian parents and sister of Halyna Hutchins filed a civil lawsuit against actor Alec Baldwin and others over the cinematographer's 2021 death in New Mexico during the filming of the Western "Rust," the family's lawyer said on Thursday.

The announcement comes after a Santa Fe prosecutor on Jan. 31 criminally charged Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter, accusing him of reckless disregard for safety when a revolver he was holding fired a live round that killed Hutchins and injured "Rust" director Joel Souza.

Baldwin in October settled a separate wrongful-death lawsuit brought by Hutchins' husband Matt Hutchins over the fatal shooting on a film set outside Santa Fe.

Hutchins was born in Ukraine, where her parents and sister live near Kyiv. Their lawsuit seeks unspecified compensation, under New Mexico law, from Baldwin, crew members and producers for the loss of their relative, said attorney Gloria Allred.

"Anyone who is responsible for her loss must be held accountable," Svetlana, Hutchins' sister, said in Russian in a video translated into English, which did not give her second name.

Luke Nikas, a lawyer representing Baldwin, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Allred said the settlement with Matt Hutchins was for him and the couple’s son and she was representing other members of the family. She said the cinematographer’s relatives in Ukraine were in communication with Matt Hutchins.

Under Matt Hutchins' settlement, filming of the movie was set to resume in early 2023 with Hutchins serving as executive producer, Baldwin remaining in the lead role and Souza directing.

In a 2021 television interview, Baldwin said he was told the gun was empty and Hutchins directed him to point it toward the camera and cock it. He said the revolver fired when he let go of the hammer and he did not pull the trigger.

An FBI test of the revolver found it would not fire unless the trigger was pulled.

(Reporting by Andrew Hay in Taos, New Mexico; Editing by Donna Bryson, Jan Harvey and Lisa Shumaker)