Following his 30-to-life sentence, actor Danny Masterson is seeking to have his rape conviction overturned. According to Masterson’s attorney, they will seek an appeal as they believe that the actor was not given a fair trial. In 2023, Masterson was convicted by a Los Angeles jury on two charges of rape by force or terror.
Masterson’s appeal lawyer, Cliff Gardner, filed his opening brief for the appellant on Tuesday, December 17, 2024. According to his opening brief, Gardner stated that witnesses had given conflicting accounts over time. Gardner claims the court made wrong decisions, hindering the presentation of key evidence for Masterson’s defense.
In the court documents, Gardner makes the case that such elements lend credence to overturning the convictions. According to the court document, Masterson had attacked two women at his home in the Hollywood Hills in separate instances in 2003.
During the time the rape happened, Danny Masterson was the star of Fox TV’s “That ’70s Show.” Although Masterson was charged with a third rape charge, the jury was unable to reach a decision. The trial was concluded in September 2023, following a mistrial earlier in November 2022.
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Has Danny Masterson Been Formally Charged With Rape?
Danny Masterson was initially accused of rape in 2017, at the height of the #MeToo movement. However, the disgraced actor refuted all claims, stating that all of the sexual interactions between himself and the victims were consensual.
Subsequently, after the allegations were made, the Los Angeles Police Department conducted a three-year investigation before filing charges in 2020. However, for two other allegations, the statute of limitations had passed, and there was not enough evidence to bring charges.
Following his arrest in 2020, Masterson was charged with having sexual encounters with three women without their consent in different events from 2001 to 2003. However, only two of those rapes saw conviction in 2023, with the third being dismissed.
According to Reinhold Mueller, the then Los Angeles County deputy district attorney, Daniel Masterson raped each of his victims with the same consistency. Speaking in September 2023, Mueller said, “He surreptitiously drugged the victims using an alcoholic beverage as the vehicle for administration and then forcibly raped them as they became incapacitated.”
He added, “This afforded him the opportunity to obtain control and dominance over his victims as he carried out his forcible assaults.” Although the victims never had toxicology tests, an expert testified that their symptoms were consistent with the use of the date rape drug GHB.
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How Many Rape Charges Is Danny Masterson Facing?
Following his arrest in 2020, Danny Masterson was charged with raping 3 women between 2001 to 2003. However, following his initial trial in 2022, the case was dismissed and termed a mistrial, although a retrial date was set. Subsequently, in May 2023, a Los Angeles jury retried a case involving three women and convicted Masterson guilty of two counts of forced rape.
According to his sentencing, Danny Masterson will serve two consecutive sentences of 15 years, one on each of the charges. Additionally, Masterson is required to register as a sexual offender. Following a second mistrial on the third rape allegation, prosecutors decided that Masterson will not face a third trial.
Three separate women, including a previous lover, accused Masterson of rape, and he entered a not-guilty plea to all three counts. However, according to a court document, Masterson’s lawyers stated the DA didn’t prosecute in 2004 due to insufficient evidence in a victim’s case.
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Was Danny Masterson Convicted of Rape?
In September 2023, Danny Masterson was found guilty of raping two women. Following his conviction, Masterson was sentenced to 30 years without parole. For the duration of the trial, Masterson did not speak at his sentence hearing, as his lawyers maintained his innocence.
Following his sentencing in 2023, the disgraced actor has been incarcerated in California Men’s Colony in San Luis Obispo County. Danny Masterson’s trial was also attended by his ex-wife, Bijou Phillips, who was in tears during his sentence.
Following his conviction in September 2023, Phillips filed for divorce, ending their 12-year marriage. The former couple is parents to a daughter, Fianna Francis Masterson, whom they welcomed in 2015.
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