Alec Baldwin sued by family of killed US Marine after online clash over Capitol attack
Washington DC - Alec Baldwin has had more legal troubles added to his plate after the family of a US Marine killed in Afghanistan last year launched a second lawsuit against the actor.
Per the New York Post, the widow and sisters of Marine Lance Corporal Rylee J. McCollum are suing Baldwin in a New York court for allegedly exposing them to online threats, after he identified them as January 6 rioters.
McCollum was one of 13 Marines killed by a suicide bomber outside Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul on August 26, 2021, during the chaotic withdrawal of international troops from the country.
Having found his sister Roice on Instagram, Baldwin sent her a check worth more than $5,000 for McCollum's widow, Jiennah, and their newborn baby. He called it a "tribute to a fallen soldier."
But the sweet gesture quickly turned sour when a few months later, the 30 Rock star noticed Roice had posted an Instagram pic showing her at the infamous Trump rally that led to the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021. For someone with Baldwin's political leanings, that was about as unforgivable as it gets.
"When I sent the $ for your late brother, out of real respect for his service to this country, I didn’t know you were a January 6th rioter," he commented under the post.
Baldwin accused of negligence and recklessness
Roice McCollum's reply came not long after.
"Protesting is perfectly legal in the country and I’ve already had my sit down with the FBI. Thanks, have a nice day!" she shot back.
That's when Baldwin decided to repost the photo on for his 2.4 million Instagram followers, mentioning her involvement in the attack, as well as the widowed Jiennah – who wasn't actually present in DC that day.
The lawsuit claims Roice immediately got "hostile, aggressive and hateful messages" from Baldwin's fans. She and her sister Cheyenne, as well as Jiennah, were allegedly compared to Nazis and accused of being white supremacists.
The family is now seeking $25 million for invasion of privacy, defamation negligence, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
"Baldwin’s conduct was negligent and reckless as he should have known that making the allegations he did against Plaintiffs to his millions of followers would cause Plaintiffs harm," the suit argues.
This is actually the second time Baldwin has been sued in his spat with the three. A previous attempt failed in Wyoming.
The 64-year-old is currently involved in multiple lawsuits over the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of his film Rust last year.
Cover photo: Collage: Angela Weiss / AFP & screenshot/Instagram/@roice_wyogirl