Danny Masterson, right, and his wife Bijou Phillips arrive for closing arguments at his second trial, May 16, 2023, in Los Angeles. A jury found “That ’70s Show” star Masterson guilty of two counts of rape Wednesday, May 31, in a retrial in Los Angeles in which the Church of Scientology played a central role. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)
A jury found “That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson guilty of two counts of rape on Wednesday in a new trial in Los Angeles.
The jury of seven women and five men reached the verdict after deliberating for seven days spread over two weeks, the Associated Press reported. The jury was unable to reach a verdict on a third count that Masterson allegedly raped a longtime girlfriend, the news service reported. They had voted 8 to 4 in favor of conviction on this charge.
Masterson, 47, was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs, the AP reported. He will be held without bail until sentenced. No sentencing date has yet been set. The judge told Masterson and his lawyers to return to court on August 4 for a hearing.
He faces 30 years to life in prison.
In a statement, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said his office was disappointed the jury did not convict on all counts but respected the decision.
“The verdicts returned by the jury in this case were undoubtedly elusive, and we thank the jurors for their service,” the statement said. “We also recognize that the prevention of sexual assault is essential and we will continue to educate the public on the importance of consent, healthy relationships and bystander intervention. We believe that by working together we can create a safer and fairer society for all.
A spokesperson for Masterson had no immediate comment.
His wife, actor and model Bijou Phillips, cried as he was taken away while other family members and friends sat stone-faced, the AP reported.
“I feel a complex range of emotions – relief, exhaustion, strength, sadness – knowing that my attacker, Danny Masterson, will have to answer for his criminal behavior,” one of the women Masterson was convicted of raping at his home in 2003, said in a statement.
Prosecutors have retried the rape charges against him after a judge denied a defense motion to dismiss the charges from deadlocked jurors last November.
Last year, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo declared a mistrial in the high-profile case after jurors failed to agree on three separate charges of rape involving three women who claimed Masterson raped them in 2001 and 2003 in Hollywood. House of the hills.
After a 4-week trial, the jurors overwhelmingly voted for acquittal but could not agree.
Masterson and his defense attorney Philip Kent Cohen felt momentum with the partial victory. They filed a motion to dismiss earlier this year, arguing that the jury’s final votes – and their previous failed efforts to find unanimity – suggested a new trial would have the same result.
All three alleged victims said they met Masterson through the Church of Scientology. The actor himself is a longtime Scientologist.
One of the alleged victims claims she was drugged and blacked out and lost consciousness, sometimes waking up to find the accused bathing and then raping her. At one point, she claims, she woke up to find herself threatened by a gun that Masterson had pulled from a dresser.
Another victim claims she was raped in the home she shared with the actor during a years-long relationship. When she resisted and tried to break free, Masterson punched her in the face, spat on her, raped her and called her “white trash,” she said.
At the previous trial, the defense often argued that the jurors had done their job and that more could not have been asked of them. The prosecutor reportedly found it “troubling” that jurors said they failed to consider various witnesses and forms of evidence when making their decisions.
“It’s not that things were overlooked that Mr. Mueller thinks are important or significant,” Cohen allegedly argued at the time, according to Variety. “It’s that things have been discussed and are not considered important to the decision-making for some of the jurors.”
Colin Kalmbacher of Law&Crime contributed to this report.
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