Alec Baldwin: Rust shooting charges downgraded by US prosecutors

Officials drop firearm enhancement charge that carries mandatory five-year term to focus on involuntary manslaughter charge

New Mexico prosecutors have walked away from their efforts to seek a five-year prison sentence for actor Alec Baldwin in the film-set death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, opting instead to pursue an essentially reduced charge against him.

Baldwin, who still faces a count of involuntary manslaughter, now is looking at a maximum of 18 months in prison if convicted. This decision came after Baldwin's attorneys argued that the firearms enhancement they had tried to attach to the case against the actor was not in effect in state law when the deadly on-set shooting occurred in October 2021.