American actor Danny Masterson, a prominent member of the Church of Scientology known for his role in the series “That ’70s Show,” was sentenced Thursday to 30 years in prison for two rapes by a Los Angeles court.
The 47-year-old actor, convicted in June, received the maximum sentence he faced.
Violations between 2001 and 2003
During his trial, three women, also Scientologists, accused him of raping them at his Hollywood Hills home between 2001 and 2003.
The jurors agreed with two of them and did not reach the unanimity necessary to pronounce a verdict on the third. At the hearing, the prosecution estimated that the actor had “drugged and raped” his victims.
This issue, sparked in 2017 following accusations against former producer Harvey Weinstein that sparked the birth of the #MeToo movement, also raised questions about the role of the Church of Scientology.
Two of the complainants claimed in particular that the organization, well established in Los Angeles, had discouraged them from contacting the police.
Danny Masterson’s defense insisted that the plaintiffs’ story had evolved over the years and suggested that prejudice against Scientology could have motivated the trial.
During a previous trial in November, a different jury refused to reach a verdict after failing to reach unanimity.
Landed in 2017
Danny Masterson became known in the late 1990s for his role in the series “That ’70s Show” alongside Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher.
He also most recently appeared alongside the latter in the Netflix series “The Ranch,” but was removed in 2017 after Los Angeles police confirmed they were investigating sexual assault allegations against him.
After the actor’s arrest in June 2020, the Los Angeles County Prosecutor’s Office announced that it had dropped two other charges of sexual assault against him, due to lack of evidence and because the statute of limitations had expired.
Source: BFM TV
