Danny Masterson found guilty of 2 counts of rape in 2nd trial – National | 24CA News
The Los Angeles jury for the rape retrial of actor Danny Masterson delivered responsible verdicts for 2 out of three rape counts in opposition to the That ’70s Show star Wednesday.
The convictions got here after almost two weeks of deliberation. The jury couldn’t attain a unanimous verdict on the third depend, which alleged Masterson raped a longtime girlfriend. They had voted 8-4 in favour of conviction.
Masterson, 47, who pleaded not responsible to all expenses of rape in opposition to him, was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs. He now faces as much as 30 years in jail.
No sentencing date has but been set, however the choose advised Masterson and his legal professionals to return to courtroom Aug. 4 for a listening to. Masterson shall be held with out bail till he’s sentenced.
His spouse, actor and mannequin Bijou Phillips, wept as he was led away. Other household and buddies sat stone-faced.
“I am experiencing a complex array of emotions — relief, exhaustion, strength, sadness — knowing that my abuser, Danny Masterson, will face accountability for his criminal behavior,” one of many girls, whom Masterson was convicted of raping at his dwelling in 2003, mentioned in a press release.
The girl whose depend left the jury deadlocked mentioned within the assertion: “While I’m encouraged that Danny Masterson will face some criminal punishment, I am devastated that he has dodged criminal accountability for his heinous conduct against me.”
The convictions come after final yr’s authentic trial on the identical three counts led to a mistrial when a jury deadlocked, failing to succeed in unanimous verdicts. Prosecutors shortly moved to carry a retrial.
During the second trial this yr, deputy district legal professional Reinhold Mueller and his staff tried to color Masterson as a serial rapist who has been protected by high-ranking officers within the Church of Scientology. (Masterson and his household are all members of the church.) They claimed Masterson, on separate events, put medication into the drinks of a longtime girlfriend and two different girls he knew via the church earlier than he raped them.
Direct dialogue of drugging was lacking from final yr’s authentic trial, with Mueller as a substitute having to indicate it via the testimony of the ladies, who mentioned they have been woozy, disoriented and at instances unconscious on the nights they described the actor raping them. Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo allowed the direct assertion on the retrial.
Masterson didn’t face any drug-related expenses.
Lawyers for each side acknowledged that there isn’t any forensic proof of any substances Masterson could have given the ladies as a result of the police investigation that led to the 2 trials didn’t start till about 15 years after the occasions.
Actor Leah Remini, a former Scientologist, mentioned she has been visiting the Los Angeles courtroom all through the trial. The retrial has garnered ample consideration from the general public partially due to Remini’s outspoken commentary.
On May 11, she shared news of an alleged discovery materials leak to Twitter and wrote that the church had “no reason at all” to own the knowledge.
“Scientology, which SHOULD be a co-defendant in this trial, has repeatedly lied, saying it has no covert involvement in this trial,” Remini, 52, accused in a protracted thread.
Remini, who left the Church of Scientology in 2013, mentioned the obvious leak was proof the church was “colluding” with Masterson and his legal professionals.
“There is nothing Scientology and Scientologists won’t do to infiltrate government offices, organizations, and institutions,” she wrote. “There’s nothing Scientology won’t do to obtain the intel it needs to protect itself. It has literally been Scientology policy for seven decades.”
Masterson didn’t testify, and his legal professionals referred to as no witnesses. The protection argued that the acts have been consensual, and tried to discredit the ladies’s tales by highlighting modifications and inconsistencies over time, which they mentioned confirmed indicators of coordination between them.
“If you decide that a witness deliberately lied about something in this case,” protection legal professional Philip Cohen advised jurors, going via their directions in his closing argument, “You should consider not believing anything that witness says.”
Testimony on this case was graphic and emotional.
Two girls, who knew Masterson from social circles within the church, mentioned he gave them drinks and that they then grew to become woozy or handed out earlier than he violently raped them in 2003.
The third, Masterson’s then-girlfriend of 5 years, mentioned she awoke to seek out him raping her, and needed to pull his hair to cease him.
The concern of drugging additionally performed a serious function within the retrial. At the primary, Olmedo solely allowed prosecutors and accusers to explain their disorientation, and to indicate that they have been drugged. The second time, they have been allowed to argue it instantly, and the prosecution tried to make it a significant factor, to no avail.
“The defendant drugs his victims to gain control,” Deputy District Attorney Ariel Anson mentioned in her closing argument. “He does this to take away his victims’ ability to consent.”
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If you or somebody you understand is experiencing abuse or is concerned in an abusive state of affairs, please go to the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime for assist. They are additionally reachable toll-free at 1-877-232-2610.
— with recordsdata from The Associated Press
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