An American man actor Danny Masterson about to be jailed for 30 years for raping two women years ago.

At his sentencing on Thursday, September 7, American actor Danny Masterson could receive a sentence of up to 30 years to life in prison for the rapes of two women two decades ago.Read full article 

In May, a jury in Los Angeles found 47-year-old Masterson guilty of two counts of forced rape. The case included three women.

Following the announcement by the prosecution that they would not retry Masterson on the rape charge, the third count against Jane Doe No. 3 was ruled a mistrial and later dismissed.

For Thursday at 8:30 a.m. PT, a probation and sentencing hearing is scheduled.

Judge Charlaine Olmedo has let the three Jane Does involved in the case—the two of whom he was found guilty of raping as well as the third whose charge was dropped—to make victim impact statements at the sentencing.

Following allegations made by three different women, including a previous girlfriend, Masterson entered a not guilty plea to three counts of felony rape. The suspected attacks allegedly occurred between 2001 and 2003. He might spend the next 30 years or the rest of his life behind bars.

After the verdict, Masterson was remanded into custody because he was thought to be a flight risk.

In November 2022, the first trial was declared a mistrial because the jury was unable to agree on a verdict. Both Masterson and the three alleged victims are followers of Scientology. 

All three ladies admitted that at first they were reluctant to cooperate with law enforcement because they believed that church doctrine forbade calling the police. Eventually, the women exited the church.

One woman alleged that the actor raped her in 2003 and pushed a pillow in her face.

Masterson was accused of raping Jane Doe No. 3 in 2001 when she was fast asleep, according to another woman who was dating him at the time. In a connected legal lawsuit against Masterson and the Church of Scientology, she and Jane Doe No. 2 are also parties.

According to KABC, defence counsel Philip Cohen suggested to the jury during his closing remarks that the ladies might have “tweaked or manoeuvred” their accounts to support their cases and that they might have been motivated by “hatred, retaliation, or money.” 

According to KABC, the defence requested a mistrial shortly after the jury was excused to begin deliberations on May 17. They said that the prosecution focused too much of their closing arguments on the alleged drugging of the victims.

Olmedo rejected the request, according to her decision that the women’s drug usage was “directly relevant to their ability to perceive the events of the charged incidents,” according to KABC.

Each of the interactions, according to Masterson, who was detained in 2020, was voluntary. All three claimed rapes occurred while “That ’70s Show” was still airing.

Authorities claimed that Masterson used his position of power inside the Church of Scientology — of which all three women were at the time members — to dodge punishment for decades following the attacks.

The women attributed their reluctance to contact the police regarding Masterson to the church. They claimed that when they reported him to Scientology officials, they were informed that they had not been sexually assaulted, sent through ethics training, and advised against reporting a high-ranking member to the police.

At the trial, deputy district attorney Reinhold Mueller told the jury that the women had been sexually assaulted, punished for it, and subjected to retaliation. They were taught by science that there is no justice for them.

In a statement following the decision, the church said that the “testimony and descriptions of Scientology beliefs” given during the trial were “uniformly false.”

“The Church has no policy prohibiting or discouraging members from reporting criminal conduct of anyone — Scientologists or not — to law enforcement,” the statement read.