Bijou phillips and danny masterson 2017 rape trial#
The Church of Scientology played a significant role in the first trial but arguably an even larger one in the second. “If you decide that a witness deliberately lied about something in this case,” defense attorney Philip Cohen told jurors, going through their instructions in his closing argument, “You should consider not believing anything that witness says.”
The defense argued that the acts were consensual, and attempted to discredit the women’s stories by highlighting changes and inconsistencies over time, which they said showed signs of coordination between them. Masterson did not testify, and his lawyers called no witnesses. They said he used his prominence in the church - where all three women were also members at the time - to avoid consequences for decades. They told jurors he drugged the women’s drinks so he could rape them. Masterson had reunited with Kutcher on the 2016 Netflix comedy The Ranch, but was written off the show when an LAPD investigation was revealed in December 2017.Prosecutors, retrying Masterson after a deadlocked jury led to a mistrial in December, said he forcibly raped three women, including a longtime girlfriend, in his Hollywood Hills home between 20. The charges date to when Masterson was at the height of his fame, starring from 1998 until 2006 as Steven Hyde on Fox’s That ‘70s Show, which made stars of Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis and Topher Grace. The motion was denied, but the issue is likely to be a major factor in any potential appeal. His attorney asked for a mistrial over the issue’s inclusion. Masterson was not charged with any counts of drugging, and no toxicology evidence backs up the assertion. “He does this to take away his victims’ ability to consent.” “The defendant drugs his victims to gain control,” Deputy District Attorney Ariel Anson said in her closing argument. The second time, they were allowed to argue it directly, and the prosecution attempted to make it a major factor, to no avail. At first, Olmedo only allowed prosecutors and accusers to describe their disorientation, and to imply that they were drugged. The issue of drugging also played a major role in the retrial. The third, Masterson’s then-girlfriend of five years, said she awoke to find him raping her, and had to pull his hair to stop him. From day one, I have denied the outrageous allegations against me. Two women, who knew Masterson from social circles in the church, said he gave them drinks and that they then became woozy or passed out before he violently raped them in 2003. Masterson who shares daughter Fianna, 9, with wife Bijou Phillips has repeatedly denied the allegations. Testimony in this case was graphic and emotional. The Associated Press does not typically name people who say they’ve been sexually abused. Masterson arrives at the Los Angeles court to learn his fate with his wife, Bijou Phillips By Jessica Murphy BBC News A jury in Los Angeles has found US actor Danny Masterson guilty on. The church vehemently denied having any policy that forbids members from going to secular authorities. You have the opportunity to show them there is justice.” “Scientology told them there’s no justice for them. “They were raped, they were punished for it, and they were retaliated against,” Deputy District Attorney Reinhold Mueller told jurors in his closing argument. The women testified that when they reported Masterson to church officials, they were told they were not raped, were put through ethics programmes themselves, and were warned against going to law enforcement to report a member of such high standing. The judge kept limits on how much prosecutors could talk about the church, and primarily allowed it to explain why the women took so long to go to authorities. Ron Hubbard, the Church of Scientology has many members who work in Hollywood. Photo / NetflixĪctor Leah Remini, a former member who has become the church’s highest-profile critic, sat in on the trial at times, putting her arm around one of the accusers to comfort her during closing arguments.įounded in 1953 by L. Danny Masterson starred in The Ranch with Ashton Kutcher.
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