Prosecutors weigh options in Alec Baldwin case

SANTA FE • A Santa Fe district attorney will announce Thursday whether charges will be brought in the fatal 2021 film-set shooting of a cinematographer by actor Alec Baldwin during a rehearsal of the Western “Rust.”

Santa Fe District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies said a decision will be announced Thursday morning in a statement and on social media, without public appearances by prosecutors.

“The announcement will be a solemn occasion, made in a manner keeping with the office’s commitment to upholding the integrity of the judicial process and respecting the victim’s family,” said Heather Brewer, a spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office.

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins died shortly after being wounded by a gunshot during setup for a scene at the ranch on the outskirts of Santa Fe on Oct. 21, 2021.

Baldwin was pointing a pistol at Hutchins when the gun went off, killing her and wounding the director, Joel Souza.

Suspect arrested in fatal Mall of America shooting

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. • A suspect wanted in connection with a fatal shooting at the Mall of America in December was arrested in Georgia on Tuesday, police said.

Bloomington, Minnesota, Police Chief Booker Hodges said during a news conference Tuesday that the 17-year-old suspect was taken into custody in Decatur, Georgia, by federal and state law enforcement officials. The suspect faces charges of second-degree murder and second-degree assault.

The Associated Press typically does not name juvenile criminal defendants.

Johntae Hudson, 19, was killed in a Dec. 23 shooting at the Mall of America, the nation’s largest shopping center located in Bloomington.

Hudson was shot eight times and died during an altercation inside the mall’s Nordstrom store. Witnesses, mall security guards and first responders tried to save him. Customers scrambled for safety and the nation’s largest shopping center went into lockdown on one of the final days of the holiday shopping season.

Denver Gazette Wire Services