Alec Baldwin is “extremely volatile” and could be a “liability” for his own defense if he takes the stand, a legal expert told Fox News Digital.
Alec Baldwin could be “a liability” for his own defense, but compromised key evidence could help him beat the case, legal experts tell Fox News Digital.
A gun Baldwin was holding discharged on the New Mexico set of the Western film “Rust” in 2021, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza.
Baldwin is facing an involuntary manslaughter rap and up to 18 months in prison if convicted. Jury selection is slated to begin Tuesday, July 9.Should Baldwin testify?
Lawyer Todd Spodek said the “30 Rock” star could well blow his top — and his defense — if he takes the stand.
The attorney represented Genevieve Sabourin, who was convicted of stalking Baldwin after an explosive Manhattan trial that saw the actor and his wife, Hilaria, step into the witness box.
“It’s incredibly risky if he testifies”, Spodek told Fox News Digital. “He’s always having outbursts. He’s someone who isn’t in control of his emotions and is extremely volatile.”
Spodek cross-examined Baldwin, grilling him about an affair he’d allegedly had with Sabourin. Baldwin denied anything more than a professional relationship with the French Canadian actress as he repeatedly attacked the attorney.
The actor, Spodek said, can easily be provoked.
“My experience with him was when you get under his skin, you get him worked up, he lashes out”, noted Spodek, who also represented fake heiress Anna Sorokin. “He’s a liability and jurors could see him as reckless and impulsive.”
Defense attorney Mark Bederow agreed with Spodek and added that prosecutors will seek to tear Baldwin apart for the contradictory accounts of the accident he gave in interviews to the media and police.
“He is in New Mexico, which is a long way from Hollywood and New York”, Bederow noted.
