'Rust' special prosecutor stepped down to 'do what's best for the case'

Attorneys for actor Alec Baldwin, accused in the 2021 shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on a movie set south of Santa Fe, sought to have Reeb disqualified as a special prosecutor in the case, claiming the role conflicts with her position as a legislator.

They based their argument on a clause in the state constitution they claim bars individuals from simultaneously exercising powers in more than one of the three branches of government.

The First Judicial District Attorney’s Office announced Reeb would leave the case earlier in the week, but a spokeswoman Thursday wouldn’t comment on whether District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies will bring on another special prosecutor.

A former DA in the 9th Judicial District in Eastern New Mexico, Reeb said the question over her participation wasn’t worth potentially risking the case.

“What if we did the whole trial, and we won the trial, and then the Court of Appeals found a different, you know — found something different [about my eligibility], and then the whole case would be reversed, and that’s just a waste of taxpayer’s money,” she said. “It’s a waste of a lot of resources when it’s very simple for me to just step off of it and do what’s best for the case.”

Reeb said she believes Carmack-Altwies and Chief Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Padgett Macias will be effective in prosecuting Baldwin and Rust film set armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed. Both face involuntary manslaughter charges.

Prosecutors originally applied a five-year sentencing enhancement to Baldwin’s and Gutierrez-Reed’s charges. The enhancement was dropped in February after the actor’s attorneys filed a motion arguing the law which created the enhancement came into effect months after the shooting.

Reeb said while she didn’t file the paperwork applying the enhancement, she received criticism for it after Baldwin’s attorneys submitted their motion.

“I understand that they’ve spun that in a way that I’m incompetent or I don’t know what I’m doing, but I feel that that was a little unfair, considering — you know, that I was just trying to do the right thing,” Reeb said.

Luke Nikas, one of Baldwin’s attorneys, did not respond Thursday to a request for comment.

Preliminary hearings for Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed are scheduled to run from May 3-17, according to online court records. Their co-defendant, assistant director David Halls, is set to plead guilty March 29 to a petty misdemeanor charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon.

Though she acknowledged speculation on her departure has swirled since the announcement, Reeb reiterated the sole reason she stepped down was to avoid becoming a distraction.

“This is on a joking level — I haven’t been bribed. I’ve seen a lot of that comment,” Reeb said. “They can check my bank accounts. Trust me, I’m not driving away in a Rolls Royce or getting paid to get off the case. I’m getting off the case because it’s the right thing to do for the state and the taxpayers and for the case — and for the victim. That’s as simple as it gets.”