According to Deadline, Danny Masterson (The Ranch, That ’70s Show) has been sentenced to thirty years to life in prison. In 2020, Masterson was charged with raping three women between 2001 and 2003. On May 31st this year, Masterson was found guilty on two of the three charges.
The victims and Masterson were a part of the Church of Scientology. Although the Church’s role in the rapes was referenced throughout the trials, the Church was not a defendant.
As Deadline notes, Judge Olmedo of the Los Angeles Country Superior Court spoke to Masterson and informed him that he will have to register as a sex offender if he is released. Olmedo stated, “You are not the victim here… your actions 20 years ago were criminal.”
After the sentencing, Deadline notes that defense attorney Shawn Holley stated, “For the past several months, a team of the top appellate lawyers in the country has been reviewing transcripts of the trial. They have identified a number of significant evidentiary and constitutional issues which they will address in briefs to both state and federal appellate courts. The errors which occurred in this case are substantial and unfortunately led to verdicts which are not supported by the evidence.”
Holley continued, “And though we have great respect for the jury in this case and for our system of justice overall, sometimes they get it wrong. And that’s what happened here. Mr. Masterson did not commit the crimes for which he has been convicted, and we, and the appellate lawyers, the best and the brightest in the country, are confident that these convictions will be overturned.”
For Masterson’s sentence, Holley had tried to set the amount to 15 years in prison. However, as Deadline notes, that request was not granted. Reinhold Mueller, who is a part of the L.A. County District Attorney’s Office, stated that this was due to the nature of the case. Specifically, there were numerous victims on “multiple occasions” of “forceable rape,” which could not be taken lightly.
According to Deadline, near the end of the sentencing, statements were read aloud by the victims who were referred to as Jane Doe No. 1, Jane Doe No. 2, and Jane Doe No. 3.
Jane Doe No. 1, who is also referred to as Jen B., stated, “I didn’t choose to be born into Scientology, just as I didn’t choose to be raped by Danny Masterson.” She also spoke out against the church and condemned them for helping to keep Masterson’s actions hidden.
Jane Doe No. 2 stated, “No one is alone. Nowhere felt safe …I have severe PTSD, waves of panic attacks. You did this to me and all your victims intentionally.”
Jane Doe No. 3, who is a former girlfriend of Masterson named Christine B., stated, “I believed him when he called me stupid, untalented, trash.” She continued to state that she was allegedly abused and allegedly raped repeatedly.
Three years after the initial charge in 2020, Masterson has been sentenced to prison after multiple rape convictions.