[ad_1]
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A judge declared the “70s Show” actor’s rape trial Wednesday null and void danny masterson The Church of Scientology played a supporting role in an impasse following a month-long trial after jurors strongly leaned toward acquitting him.
Masterson, 46, was charged in Los Angeles Superior Court with raping three women, including an ex-girlfriend, at his Hollywood Hills home between 2001 and 2003. He has pleaded not guilty, and his lawyers say the actions were consensual. All three women were members of the church at the time, and Masterson is still one of them.
“I find that the jury is hopelessly deadlocked,” Judge Charlaine Olmedo declared after asking the court if there was anything the court could do to bring them closer to a unanimous decision. She set a March retrial date.
After they said on Nov. 18 they could not reach a consensus, Olmedo ordered jurors to take a Thanksgiving break and continue their deliberations. Jury resumes deliberations on Monday After two alternates replaced a juror who had COVID-19.
Jurors said they voted seven times on Tuesday and Wednesday but could not reach a consensus on any of the three counts.
Only two jurors voted to convict on the first count, four on the second and five on the third, the jury foreman said.
The result was a serious setback for prosecutors and three women who said they were seeking long-overdue justice.
Two of the alleged victims in the case released statements saying they were disappointed that “Masterson evaded criminal responsibility” because of his deplorable actions. Yet together we are determined to continue fighting for what is right. “
Two of the women and the husband of one of the women are suing Masterson, the Church of Scientology, its leader David Miscavege and others, alleging stalking, harassment after they tried to expose Masterson and intimidate them.
Masterson and his wife, actor and model Bijou Phillips, left the courtroom and did not speak to reporters.
Litigation follows a string of cases with #MeToo connotations on both sides of the Strait, including Harvey Weinstein Trial in Los Angeles Just down the hall from Masterson. in New York, Kevin Spacey wins over sexual misconduct Actor Anthony Rapp sues in New York, jury orders director and screenwriter Paul Haggis pay $10 million in a civil case there.
But in the Masterson trial, as in the Haggis trial, the influence of #MeToo was largely overshadowed by the specter of Scientology, even as the judge insisted that the church would not be the de facto defendant.
Deputy District Attorney Reinhold Mueller said the church had tried to silence the women, which is why it took 20 years for the case to go to trial.
Masterson’s attorney, Philip Cohen, said the church was mentioned 700 times during the trial and argued that it served as a reason for the prosecution’s failure to bring a credible case against Masterson, a prominent Scientologist. Excuse.
Cohen said he would file a motion to dismiss the case based on how the jury voted. He said the jury provided additional insights after the trial nullification verdict that were helpful, but would not discuss what they told him.
“As a lawyer, you always wonder if what you’re doing every day in court has any effect on … the jury,” Cohen said. “Obviously we’re making progress.”
Jurors were led out of court without speaking to reporters.
Masterson did not testify. Instead of offering defense testimony, Cohen focused on inconsistencies in the accounts of the three plaintiffs, who he said changed their stories over time and talked to each other before calling the police.
“The key to this case is not when they report it,” Cohen said in closing arguments. “This is what they said when they reported it. What they said after they reported it. And what they said at trial.”
Mueller argued that Masterson was a man “to whom ‘no’ has never meant ‘no,'” as the vivid and emotional testimony of the three accusers demonstrated.
Two women said they became dizzy or passed out after being served drinks by Masterson before being violently raped. One said she thought she was going to die when Masterson covered her face with a pillow.
An ex-girlfriend said she woke up to find Masterson having sex with her without her consent. The defense said her claim was undermined because she later had sex with him after the split.
Cohen told jurors they could acquit Masterson if they believed he had “actually and reasonably believed” the women had consented to the sex. Mueller countered that no one would believe the described actions were consensual, and reminded jurors that a woman repeatedly told him “no,” pulled his hair and tried to escape from under him.
Mueller told jurors not to be swayed by defense speculation and said contradictions in victims’ testimony were a sign of truth, not a written narrative.
The allegations date back to the height of Masterson’s fame, when he played Steven Hyde on Fox’s “70s Show” from 1998 to 2006. The show, starring Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis and Topher Grace, is getting a reboot on Netflix as “The ’90s Show.”
Masterson had reunited with Kutcher on the Netflix comedy “The Ranch,” but the show was canceled in December 2017 after an LAPD investigation was revealed.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. all rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
[ad_2]
Source link
