Nearly three years ago, That ’70s Show actor Danny Masterson was charged with rape in Los Angeles. That development happened two-and-a-half years after Netflix fired him from The Ranch due to the mounting sexual assault allegations against him. And that development went down after several years of these cases stalling out in the LA county court system, so it’s safe to say that this has been quite an ordeal for the plaintiffs in these cases.
Along the way as well, a jury deadlock led to retrial on three counts of rape by force or fear while the DA’s office declined to charge him in two other cases, due to statute of limitations and insufficient evidence issues, respectively. Variety now reports that on Wednesday, two of the three counts of rape led to convictions with the jury deadlocking on the third. For the two convictions, he could serve 30 years behind bars:
Masterson was accused of raping three women at his Hollywood Hills home between 2001 and 2003. The jury convicted him of raping two women in 2003, but could not reach a verdict pertaining to an allegation from November 2001 involving a former girlfriend.
Throughout this case, the Church of Scientology has arisen in discussion, given that Masterson is a prominent celebrity member of the L. Ron Hubbard-founded organization, and four accusers previously sued both Masterson and Scientology while alleging that they were stalked and harassed by church affiliates after they accused Masterson of sexual assault. Back in 2017, Leah Remini (an ex-second-generation Scientologist) interviewed Masterson’s accusers to spread awareness of the cases. When the previous jury deadlocked in 2022, Remini vowed to never stop fighting against the church.
Masterson will return to court at a later date for formal sentencing.
(Via Variety)