bijou phillips and danny masterson 2017 rape

#BIJOU PHILLIPS AND DANNY MASTERSON 2017 RAPE TRIAL#

The alleged harassment is the subject of a civil lawsuit filed by two of the accusers. “Nevertheless, they soldiered on, determined to seek justice.” For years, they and their families have faced vicious attacks and harassment from Scientology and Danny’s well-funded legal team,” she posted. The women who survived Danny Masterson’s predation are heroes. Remini said on Twitter that the two guilty verdicts in the retrial are “a relief.

#BIJOU PHILLIPS AND DANNY MASTERSON 2017 RAPE TRIAL#

Tensions ran high in the courtroom between current and former Scientologists, and even leaked into testimony, with the accusers saying on the stand that they felt intimidated by some members in the room.Īctor 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.

The Church was not a party to this case and religion did not belong in this proceeding as Supreme Court precedent has maintained for centuries.” The church said in a statement after the verdict that the “introduction of religion into this trial was an unprecedented violation of the First Amendment and affects the due process rights of every American. Olmedo allowed expert testimony on church policy from a former official in Scientology leadership who has become a prominent opponent. 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. “We want to express our gratitude to the three women who came forward and bravely shared their experiences,” Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said in a statement after the verdict Wednesday. They said he used his prominence in the church - where all three women were also members at the time - to avoid consequences for decades. “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 the women, whom Masterson knew as a fellow member of the church and was convicted of raping at his home in 2003, said in a statement.Ī second woman, a former girlfriend, whose count left the jury deadlocked, said in the statement: “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.”Ī spokesperson for Masterson declined to comment, but his attorneys will almost certainly appeal.Īfter a deadlocked jury led to a mistrial in December, prosecutors retried Masterson, saying he drugged and forcibly raped three women in his Hollywood Hills home between 20. Masterson, 47, will be held without bail until he is sentenced. They had voted 8-4 in favor of conviction. They could not reach a verdict on the third count, that alleged Masterson raped a longtime girlfriend. The jury of seven women and five men reached the verdict after deliberating for seven days spread over two weeks. Masterson’s wife, actor and model Bijou Phillips, gasped when the verdict was read and wept as he was taken into custody, while a group of family and friends who sat stone-faced behind him throughout both trials. LOS ANGELES (AP) - “That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson was led out in handcuffs from a Los Angeles courtroom Wednesday and could get 30 years to life in prison after a jury found him guilty on two of three counts of rape at his second trial, in which the Church of Scientology played a central role.

Bijou phillips and danny masterson 2017 rape