Hollywood star Alec Baldwin may have figuratively dodged a bullet when the criminal case against him for the "Rust" movie set shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was dismissed by a judge and a subsequent appeal was dropped by prosecutors.

According to one prominent attorney, however, the end of the criminal case against Baldwin, despite being an injustice, has cleared the way for civil litigation to hold the Hollywood star accountable for Hutchins' death, the Associated Press reported.

That attorney is victims' rights advocate Gloria Allred, who represents Hutchins' family and has vowed to pursue claims for damages and compensation on their behalf for the untimely loss of their loved one.

Criminal case against Baldwin dismissed in July

In July, Variety reported that a New Mexico judge dismissed the involuntary manslaughter criminal case against Baldwin in light of critical mistakes made by prosecutors, including a failure to turn over relevant evidence to the defense as required.

Allred, who represents Hutchins' family members who live in Ukraine, said at the time that the dismissal "does not change the fact that Alec Baldwin killed Halyna Hutchins on the set of 'Rust,'" and added, "It does not change the fact that he fired a loaded gun while pointing it at a human being."

Baldwin's attorneys had pushed back against Allred's lawsuit by arguing that Hutchins did not have a "sufficiently close relationship" with her family in Ukraine for them to deserve damages for her death, but Allred insisted at the time that "We’re going to fight to the end for Halyna Hutchins," and that she could prove that "the parents had a very close relationship with Halyna, even though they were thousands of miles away."

Allred vows to "vigorously" continue civil lawsuit against Baldwin

Fast forward to an announcement this week from New Mexico prosecutors that they would not pursue an appeal for the dismissal of the criminal case, per the AP, which Allred sharply criticized in a press conference and statement released on Christmas Eve that included a vow to go after Baldwin with the family's civil claims.

"As you can imagine, Halyna's family was devastated after hearing that the criminal case against Alec Baldwin in New Mexico was dismissed by the judge before the jury was given the opportunity to fully hear the facts related to Halyna's death," Allred said. "My clients believe that there was no justice because an impartial jury was not given the opportunity to reach a verdict regarding the guilt or innocence of Alec Baldwin."

"The sudden dismissal with prejudice of the criminal case by the Court has left the family reeling from what they feel was an unjust outcome and a denial of justice in the criminal justice system for their beloved Halyna who was killed when a bullet was discharged from the gun held by Alec Baldwin," she continued. "They expected better from a Court in the United States of America."

Allred praised the efforts of Special Counsel Kari Morrisey but was critical of the Santa Fe County district attorney and New Mexico attorney general, and asserted, "Clearly, the rights of Alec Baldwin were protected, but the due process rights of the victims, Halyna Hutchins and her parents, and sister, were violated."

The attorney added, "Even though the criminal case has concluded, and Halyna’s parents were denied justice in the criminal case, we will continue the fight for justice in our civil lawsuit against Alec Baldwin and 'Rust' productions, and we will vigorously continue to litigate our case in the civil court in New Mexico."

Response from New Mexico Justice Department

Local media outlet KOAT reported that the New Mexico Department of Justice said in a response statement that it had "declined to appeal the dismissal" of the criminal case because of "significant procedural irregularities" by prosecutors and that "We believe it is in the best interests of justice for the criminal matter against Mr. Baldwin to remain closed and hope that Ms. Hutchins' family can obtain important answers and a sense of closure through their still pending civil action."

The department further noted that an appeal would have been "untenable" given the judge's determination that "critical evidence had been withheld" from the defense as well as the "special prosecutor's gross mishandling of the case at trial," and in a dig against Morrisey suggested, "Perhaps if the District Attorney had selected someone with more direct experience as a prosecutor, this outcome could have been avoided."

"Nevertheless, Attorney General [Raul] Torrez will not prolong the grief and anguish of Ms. Hutchins' family in the vain attempt to salvage the compromised criminal case against Mr. Baldwin. Nor will he add to the more than $750,000 already paid by New Mexico's taxpayers in this matter," the statement added. "There are other victims' families in Santa Fe County and across New Mexico who are awaiting justice, and our energy needs to be devoted to supporting those cases on appeal."