A judge denied a defense request on Monday to postpone the sentencing of actor Danny Masterson, famous for his role in “That ’70s Show,” who was found guilty of raping two women at his home in Hollywood Hills nearly 20 years ago. Masterson’s attorney, Shawn Holley, requested additional time to prepare a motion for a new trial. However, the judge ruled that the sentencing should proceed as scheduled on September 7th.
Holley acknowledged the victims’ desire to bring the case to a close and suggested that the judge hear from them on the sentencing date before postponing the sentencing. Deputy District Attorney Reinhold Mueller argued that any further delay would be unfair to the victims, who have the right to a timely resolution. The judge ultimately allowed the defense until September 5th to prepare their motion for a new trial.
Masterson, who is facing up to 30 years to life in prison, was taken into custody after the jury’s verdict on May 31st and did not attend the hearing.
This was the second trial for Masterson, who was charged in 2020 with three counts of rape. In the first trial, the jury was leaning towards acquittal, but they were unable to reach a unanimous decision, resulting in a mistrial. However, in the retrial, Masterson was convicted of the two rapes and the jury deadlocked on the third charge relating to a former girlfriend.
Prosecutors announced in July that they would not retry the charge involving the third alleged victim, leading to its dismissal. At the hearing, the defense made a motion requesting that the dismissal be with prejudice, barring the prosecution from refiling the charge. The judge denied this request but stated that the defense could raise the issue again if the charge is refiled in the future.
The judge is expected to hear impact statements from the two victims who Masterson was convicted of raping, as well as the dismissed count’s alleged victim. The prosecution had requested that three additional women be allowed to speak at the sentencing, but the judge turned down their request last month.
The prosecutor emphasized in his closing argument that Masterson had drugged and raped the victims, urging the jury to hold him accountable. Masterson’s defense attorney questioned the credibility of the women and raised concerns about the government’s case against his client. He argued that the alleged victims had collaborated with each other and that their accounts had changed over the years.
The defense also argued that there was no forensic evidence to support the prosecution’s claim that the victims’ drinks had been drugged. The judge dismissed the defense’s requests for a mistrial or a special jury instruction due to the prosecution’s references to drugging. Meanwhile, the Church of Scientology, to which Masterson and the alleged victims belonged, criticized the prosecution’s characterization of the church’s actions.
The Church of Scientology is also involved in a civil lawsuit filed by the four women involved in the criminal case. They allege that they were stalked and harassed after reporting the sexual assault allegations to the police. The church denies these allegations and expressed confidence in being vindicated.
In December 2017, Masterson was fired from the show “The Ranch” following sexual assault allegations. He denied the allegations and expressed disappointment at being presumed guilty without due process.
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