Actor Danny Masterson has lost his appeal against his rape conviction, and his 30-year prison sentence has been upheld. Masterson is best known for his role in the series That '70s Show.
Masterson was convicted in 2023 on two counts of raping two women in 2003. A third count, which related to a third complainant and an alleged rape in 2001, was dropped. Masterson maintained that sex with all three complainants was consensual.
In December, he filed an appeal questioning the credibility of the complainants. He also argued that he did not receive a fair trial because the judge, Charlaine F Olmedo of the Los Angeles Superior Court, was biased towards Scientology. In a final 89-page decision received on Tuesday at the California Court of Appeal, a three-judge panel rejected Masterson's arguments. The panel found that Olmedo's statements during the trial did not show 'any hatred or departure from neutrality regarding Scientology'.
During the trial, prosecutors argued that Masterson, a prominent Scientologist, used his role in the church to evade accountability for the attacks. All three complainants were members of the church at the time. Prosecutors claimed that the complainants delayed reporting the incidents due to fear of violating the Scientology rule against contacting the police and of facing retaliation.
Two of his accusers testified that when they reported Masterson to Scientology officials, they were told they had not been raped. Two testified that they went through 'ethics programs' which they compared to repeated interrogations. Two testified that they were warned not to contact the police. One of the women said that as a result, she was shunned and rejected.
Olmedo allowed former Scientologist Claire Headley to testify as an expert on the church's beliefs and practices. Headley told the court that Scientology considers contacting law enforcement agencies a 'suppressive act' which can be punished by excommunication. In the appeal, Masterson's lawyers argued that the court had improperly intruded into the interpretation of church doctrine.
The appellate panel wrote: 'The jury in this case was not asked to determine the truth or falsity of Scientology doctrine or beliefs.' It added: 'The admission of Scientology evidence for these purposes did not violate the First Amendment.' The panel also rejected separate arguments regarding statute of limitations and evidentiary rulings, and dismissed the claim that he had not received adequate defence.
Masterson's lawyers Cliff Gardner and Eric Multhaup called it an 'unfortunate decision'. They told Variety that they would appeal to the California Supreme Court. After Masterson was found guilty in 2023, the Church of Scientology issued a statement saying that 'testimony and descriptions of Scientology beliefs' during the trial had been 'uniformly false'. The statement noted: 'The Church has no policy that prohibits or discourages members from reporting criminal behaviour by anyone – Scientologist or not – to law enforcement agencies.'
