Los Angeles, Jul 14 (IANS): Hollywood star Alec Baldwin, who has been embroiled in the 'Rust' fatal shooting case since October 2021, has spoken out following the dramatic dismissal of his involuntary manslaughter trial.

Recently, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer issued a verdict to dismiss the case with prejudice on its third day in Santa Fe’s 1st Judicial District Court of New Mexico, reports People magazine.

The 66-year-old actor-producer expressed relief that the years-long legal drama was over in an Instagram post on Saturday.

"There are too many people who have supported me to thank just now," Baldwin wrote alongside an image of himself in court.

He added: "To all of you, you will never know how much I appreciate your kindness toward my family.”

According to People, Baldwin was indicted by a New Mexico grand jury in January after the gun he was holding during a 2021 rehearsal on the set of his Western movie discharged, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza.

Baldwin has maintained that he did not pull the trigger of the gun or know why it contained live ammunition. He pleaded not guilty and, if convicted, faced up to 18 months in prison.

The actor’s legal team had repeatedly asked for the case to be dropped, including on July 12, when special prosecutor Kari Morrissey made the unusual move of taking the stand herself to testify about possibly suppressing relevant evidence.

In part because ammunition dropped off at the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Office was filed separately, “the late discovery of this evidence during the trial has impeded the effective use of evidence in such a way that it has impacted the fundamental fairness of the proceedings,” said Sommer in the announcement of her decision, which prompted Baldwin to burst into tears.

Alongside his wife Hilaria Baldwin, others who supported the star throughout the three-day trial were his sister Beth Keuchler and brother Stephen Baldwin.