Judge denies Alec Baldwin's bid to dismiss 'Rust' charge over firearm evidence

A New Mexico judge denied Alec Baldwin's bid to drop his involuntary manslaughter charge over firearm evidence stemming from the 2021 fatal shooting on the set of "Rust" before his trial starts next month.In their request to dismiss the indictment, Baldwin's attorneys claimed the state "intentionally" destroyed key evidence -- the firearm involved in the shooting -- denying them the chance to review potentially exculpatory evidence.Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer denied the request in an order issued on Friday, following arguments during a virtual hearing on Monday.Baldwin's trial is scheduled to begin with jury selection on July 9.MORE: Alec and Hilaria Baldwin announce reality show 1 month before criminal trial over fatal 'Rust' shootingThe actor was practicing a cross-draw in a church on the set of the Western film when the Colt .45 revolver fired a live round, fatally striking 42-year-old cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.Baldwin, 66, who was also a producer on the film, was indicted by a grand jury on involuntary manslaughter in connection with Hutchins' death earlier this year, after prosecutors previously dropped the charge.He pleaded not guilty.Alec Baldwin attends The Roundabout Gala 2023 at The Ziegfeld Ballroom in New York City, March 06, 2023.John Lamparski/Getty ImagesBaldwin's attorneys argued that the firearm is "central" to the state's theory of guilt, but that they were denied the opportunity to examine it themselves and that FBI forensic testing that damaged the gun was unnecessary."They understood that this was potentially exculpatory evidence and they destroyed it anyway," Baldwin's attorney, John Bash, said during Monday's hearing.Baldwin has maintained that he did not pull the trigger of the firearm, though the FBI forensic report determined that the gun could not have been fired without pulling the trigger.Bash argued that there's reason to believe that further testing would show the firearm was capable of discharging without the pull of the trigger....