Danny Masterson, former star of That ’70s Show and The Ranch was convicted Wednesday on two counts of forcible rape. The jury in the case could not reach a verdict on a third count that was from a former girlfriend in 2001.
On the two charges, he faces upwards of 30 years to life in prison. According to people in the courtroom, there was an audible gasp from Masterson’s family as the verdict was read. He was accused of raping three women at his Hollywood home between 2001 and 2003. The jury convicted him of the two counts from 2003 but couldn’t agree on the count from 2001.
His first trial for the charges ended with a hung jury, with the majority voting to acquit him on all three charges.
Masterson is a member of the Church of Scientology, and the case has shined a significant light on the practices and teachings of the Church. All three alleged victims were members at the time of the assaults but have since left the church. All three also said that Church members dissuaded them from reporting Masterson due to his acting success.
According to his closing arguments, prosecutor Ariel Anson argued that Masterson had taken advantage of his position as an “upstart” in the church to rape the victims without repercussion.
“Like all predators, the defendant carefully sought out his prey. The church taught his victims that rape isn’t rape, that you cause this and above all you aren’t allowed to go to law enforcement. What better hunting ground? In Scientology, the defendant is a celebrity and he’s untouchable.”
The difference between the two cases was that the prosecution pushed that Masterson had drugged the women in the second trial. They had reported being woozy, disoriented, and having a foggy memory after seeing him.
“The defendant drugs his victims to be in control. He does this to take away these victims’ ability to consent. This is not about consent. This is not about the defendant misunderstanding these victim’s signals. When he drugs them, he’s able to completely physically control them. You don’t want to have sex? You don’t have a choice… The defendant makes that choice for these victims and he does it over and over and over again.”
Ariel Anson in court.
We’ll keep you updated on this story as it develops.
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