Pretrial hearing sets stage for Alec Baldwin's arrival in court in fatal shooting of cinematographer

A New Mexico judge is setting the table for the involuntary manslaughter trial of actor Alec Baldwin in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie.

A New Mexico judge is setting the table for the involuntary manslaughter trial of actor Alec Baldwin in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie.

Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer will consider an array of requests from prosecutors and defence attorneys that could restrict what evidence, testimony and court arguments are heard by a jury. The pretrial hearing Monday in Santa Fe is expected to last much of the day. Baldwin's attorneys have waived his appearance at all hearings before the trial.

Baldwin’s trial starts July 9 with jury selection and is scheduled to last 10 days.

Last week, the judge cleared the way for crucial firearms experts for the prosecution to testify about Baldwin's handling of the revolver and whether the gun was functioning properly prior to the fatal shooting.

Defence attorneys have asked the judge to exclude consideration of Baldwin's secondary role as a co-producer on “Rust," arguing it's irrelevant to allegations of negligence, and might confuse jurors. Prosecutors disagree and say it was likely Baldwin’s imposing role as a producer that emboldened him to act recklessly and disregard the safety of others in allegedly flouting gun-safety protocols.

The defence team and prosecutors disagree about Baldwin’s contractual authority as producer over crew members who dealt with weapons and safety.

Prosecutors argue that a state workplace safety investigation, which found serious violations on set, was incomplete, untrustworthy and should be prohibited from the trial.