Current:Home > MyThat ’70s Show Alum Danny Masterson Found Guilty of Rape -MoneyBase
That ’70s Show Alum Danny Masterson Found Guilty of Rape
View
Date:2025-04-11 18:18:47
Danny Masterson's rape retrial has reached an end.
The That '70s Show alum was found guilty of two counts of rape by a Los Angeles jury on May 31, according to NBC News. The jury could not reach a verdict on the third count.
Masterson was arrested and charged on three charges of forcible rape in 2020. Prosecutors alleged that Masterson sexually assaulted three women—who they said the actor met through the Church of Scientology—at his Hollywood Hills home in separate incidents between 2001 and 2003.
Masterson, who previously pled not guilty to the charges, now faces up to 30 years behind bars, according to NBC News. He was taken away from the courtroom in handcuffs as his wife Bijou Phillips cried, per the outlet.
The ruling comes six months after a mistrial was declared in Masterson's case, in which the jury was unable to reach unanimous decisions for the three rape charges. His new trial began in April, with his three accusers—identified as Jane Doe #1, Jane Doe #2 and Jane Doe #3—giving emotional testimonies, according to the Associated Press.
Masterson did not testify during the retrial, according to NBC News.
In the wake of Masterson's guilty verdict, Jane Doe #2 said in a statement outside of courtroom that she was feeling a "complex array of emotions," including "relief, exhaustion, strength, sadness," per NBC News.
She continued, "I am disappointed that he was not convicted on all counts, but take great solace in the fact that he, the Church of Scientology, and others, will have to fully account for their abhorrent actions in civil court."
The women had previously accused the Church of Scientology of pressuring them into not speaking to police about their allegations. The church denied their claims in a May 31 statement obtained by E! News June 1, noting that the organization "has no policy prohibiting or discouraging members from reporting criminal conduct of anyone—Scientologists or not—to law enforcement."
The statement continued, "There is not a scintilla of evidence supporting the scandalous allegations that the Church harassed the accusers."
Jane Doe #3, whose rape charge the jury did not reach a verdict on, said she felt "devastated" that Masterson "dodged criminal accountability for his heinous conduct against me."
Masterson is being held without bail and is due back in court on Aug. 4 for a hearing, according to the Associated Press. No sentencing date has been set.
E! News reached out to Masterson's lawyers for comment and has not heard back.
For free, confidential help, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 or visit rainn.org.veryGood! (86)
Related
- Meet the volunteers risking their lives to deliver Christmas gifts to children in Haiti
- Heat blamed for more than a dozen deaths in Texas, Louisiana. Here's how to stay safe.
- Payment of Climate Debt, by Rich Polluting Nations to Poorer Victims, a Complex Issue
- Puerto Rico’s Solar Future Takes Shape at Children’s Hospital, with Tesla Batteries
- Meet the volunteers risking their lives to deliver Christmas gifts to children in Haiti
- Publishers Clearing House to pay $18.5 million settlement for deceptive sweepstakes practices
- Elon Musk: Tesla Could Help Puerto Rico Power Up Again with Solar Microgrids
- 2 more Connecticut officers fired after man became paralyzed in police van
- How to watch the 'Blue Bloods' Season 14 finale: Final episode premiere date, cast
- Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar Break Silence on Duggar Family Secrets Docuseries
Ranking
- Behind on your annual reading goal? Books under 200 pages to read before 2024 ends
- California man sentenced to more than 6 years in cow manure Ponzi scheme
- Lisa Rinna's Daughter Delilah Hamlin Makes Red Carpet Debut With Actor Henry Eikenberry
- Vintners and Farmers Are Breathing Easier After the Demise of Proposition 15, a ‘Headache’ at Best
- Toyota to invest $922 million to build a new paint facility at its Kentucky complex
- Landon Barker Appears to Get Girlfriend Charli D'Amelio's Eye Tattooed on His Arm
- Small businesses got more than $200 billion in potentially fraudulent COVID loans, report finds
- Food Sovereignty: New Approach to Farming Could Help Solve Climate, Economic Crises
Recommendation
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow owns a $3 million Batmobile Tumbler
Senate 2020: In the Perdue-Ossoff Senate Runoff, Support for Fossil Fuels Is the Dividing Line
Climate Change Could Bring Water Bankruptcy With Grave Consequences
Publishers Clearing House to pay $18.5 million settlement for deceptive sweepstakes practices
The 401(k) millionaires club keeps growing. We'll tell you how to join.
Latest Canadian wildfire smoke maps show where air quality is unhealthy now and forecasts for the near future
Community Solar Heads for Rooftops of NYC’s Public Housing Projects
Conservative businessman Tim Sheehy launches U.S. Senate bid for Jon Tester's seat