“That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson could face up to 30 years in prison on Thursday for raping two women two decades ago.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo is set to sentence the 47-year-old actor after ruling on a defense motion for a new trial that he will likely reject, and after hearing impact statements from victims.
A jury of seven women and five men found Masterson guilty of two counts on May 31 after seven days of deliberations.
Both attacks happened at Masterson’s Hollywood-area home in 2003, when he was at the height of his fame on the Fox network sitcom “That ’70s Show.”
The jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict on the third charge, the allegation that Masterson also raped his former girlfriend.
The decision came in a second trial after a jury failed to reach a verdict on three counts of forced rape in December and a mistrial was declared.
Prosecutors allege that Masterson used his prominence in the Church of Scientology – of which the three women were also members at the time – to avoid consequences for decades after the attack.
“That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson could face up to 30 years in prison Thursday for raping two women two decades ago.©Carsey-Werner Co/Courtesy Everett Collection
The woman blamed the church for their hesitation to go to the police about Masterson.
They testified that when they reported it to Scientology officials, they were told they were not raped, had gone through their own ethics program, and were warned not to go to law enforcement to report high-ranking members.
“They’ve been raped, they’ve been punished for it, and they’ve responded to it,” Deputy District Attorney Reinhold Mueller told jurors at the trial. “Scientology tells them that there is no justice for them.”
The church said in a statement after the verdict that “testimony and descriptions of Scientology beliefs” during the trial were “uniformly false.”
The decision came in a second trial after a jury failed to reach a verdict on three counts of forcible rape in December and a mistrial was declared.REUTERS
“The Church has no policy that prohibits or discourages members from reporting the criminal conduct of anyone – Scientist or not – to law enforcement,” the statement said.
Masterson did not testify, and his attorney called no witnesses.
The defense argued that the actions were consensual, and tried to discredit the women’s stories by highlighting changes and inconsistencies over time, which they said showed signs of coordination between them.
Masterson and his wife Bijou Phillips leave Los Angeles Superior Court after a judge declared a mistrial in his rape case in November 2022.AP
The women whose testimony led to Masterson’s conviction said that in 2003, he gave them drinks and that they then passed out or passed out before he violently raped them.
Olmedo allowed prosecutors and accusers to say directly in the second trial that Masterson drugged the woman, while only allowing the woman to describe their condition in the first.
Masterson was not charged with any drug charges, and there was no toxicological evidence to support the allegations.
The defense argued that the actions were consensual, and tried to discredit the women’s stories by highlighting changes and inconsistencies over time, which they said showed signs of coordination between them.
That issue could be a factor in a planned appeal of Masterson’s conviction defense.
The Associated Press typically does not name people who say they have been sexually abused.
Masterson starred with Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis and Topher Grace on “That ’70s Show” from 1998 to 2006.
Masterson was not charged with any drug charges, and there is no toxicological evidence to support the allegations.©Carsey-Werner Co/Courtesy Everett Collection
Masterson starred with Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis and Topher Grace on “That ’70s Show” from 1998 to 2006. FOX Image Collection via Getty Images
Masterson reunited with Kutcher on the 2016 Netflix comedy “The Ranch,” but was written off the show when the LAPD investigation came to light the following year.Greg Gayne/Netflix
He reunited with Kutcher on the 2016 Netflix comedy “The Ranch,” but was written off the show when an LAPD investigation came to light the following year.
Although the investigation began before a wave of women rocked Hollywood with stories about Harvey Weinstein in October 2017, Masterson’s conviction and sentence still represent a major #MeToo-era victory for Los Angeles prosecutors, along with the conviction of Weinstein himself last year.
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