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Articles written by Phaedra Haywood The Santa Fe New Mexican


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  • Judge dismisses Alec Baldwin case

    Phaedra Haywood The Santa Fe New Mexican, Syndicated content|Updated Jul 13, 2024

    SANTA FE -- District Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer brought the involuntary manslaughter trial of Alec Baldwin to an abrupt and stunning conclusion Friday when she dismissed the case based on the state's withholding of evidence. The dismissal was with prejudice, which means the charge cannot be refiled, bringing to an end a strange and tragic case that gained worldwide attention and may be discussed for decades. The judge's ruling was based on the state's mishandling of evidence — specifically, a box of ammunition turned into t...

  • Santa Fe jury awards $66 million in 2016 movie accident case

    Phaedra Haywood The Santa Fe New Mexican, Syndicated content|Updated Dec 28, 2022

    SANTA FE -- A Santa Fe jury awarded more than $66 million in damages last week in a case filed by a Los Angeles cameraman who suffered a spinal cord injury on a New Mexico movie set in 2016. The award — which includes $36 million in punitive damages — is among the largest in state history. Plaintiff James Razo, 55, said the jury's verdict Friday was "a huge emotional relief" and would help him put the life-altering incident behind him. "I can finally begin my healing journey," he said in a phone interview Tuesday. Razo sai...

  • State allots money for potential 'Rust' prosecutions

    Phaedra Haywood The Santa Fe New Mexican, Syndicated content|Updated Sep 23, 2022

    SANTA FE -- The state Board of Finance has awarded the First Judicial District Attorney's Office more than $317,000 to prosecute people connected to the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on set of the Alec Baldwin film "Rust" in October, according to the board's website. The money — awarded in response to an emergency request from District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies — is only about half of what the District Attorney's Office estimates it will need to bring charges against up to four people, according to a c...