‘That ‘70s Show’ actor Danny Masterson sentenced to 30 years in prison for rapes

That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson was sentenced to 30 years in prison Thursday for raping two women Assaults happened two decades ago, at the height of his celebrity

Masterson, 47, was found guilty of raping victims Jen B. and N. Trout in his Hollywood-area home back in 2003

Masterson he was sentenced to 15 years for each count, which will be served consecutively, the maximum sentence allowable under the law

 Danny Masterson was convicted of raping two women in 2003 and jailed 30 years on Thursday. “One way or another you will have to come to terms with your prior actions, and their consequences,” Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Charlaine Olmedoe told Masterson

“That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson was sentenced to 30 years in prison Thursday for raping two women at the height of his celebrity two decades ago.
Masterson, 47, who was found guilty of raping victims Jen B. and N. Trout in his Hollywood-area home back in 2003, remained silent in court as he was sentenced to 15 years for each count, which will be served consecutively, the maximum sentence allowable under the law.
“One way or another you will have to come to terms with your prior actions, and their consequences,” Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Charlaine Olmedoe told Masterson. 

Danny Masterson who is seen entering court with his wife, Bijou Phillips, in May to hear the verdict

During his retrial Jen B., who was born into a family of Scientologists, testified how she was part of Masterson’s circle of friends, which included Lisa Marie Presley.
She said she went to Masterson’s home in April 2003 to pick up a set of keys. After she drank a drink offered by the actor, Jen B. said she became sick. She said Masterson carried her upstairs into his bathroom where he touched her breasts, but she was too weak to stop him.
Jen B. said Masterson then raped her in his bedroom. She recalled Masterson grabbed a gun from his nightstand and threatened her. She filed a police report in 2004 but Masterson was never arrested. She then went back to authorities in 2016.
The second plaintiff, N. Trout, also testified Masterson attacked her at his home after a night of drinking with friends.
Prosecutors said Masterson raped N. Trout so viciously that she threw up in her mouth and begged Masterson to at least use a condom.
The defendant’s ex-girlfriend Chrissie Bixler claimed the actor was emotionally and sexually abusive.
Bixler said Masterson raped her in his Hollywood Hills home in November 2001 and had refused to stop when she told him she didn’t want to have sex.

Chrissie Carnell Bixler [right], who dated Masterson, is one of three women who accused him of rape, but the jury was deadlocked over the charges in her case. He was however convicted for raping victims Jen B. and N. Trout back in 2003

The court also heard how Danny Masterson bought the silence of one of his rape accusers by getting her to sign a $400,000 non-disclosure agreement (NDA)., as the victim herself testified. Jen B., said she was given the choice to sign the NDA or risk being excommunicated from the Scientology faith that she and Masterson shared.
While the Church of Scientology was not a defendant in the case, the three women alleged Church officials and followers of the religion had played a part in discouraging them from reporting Masterson, who is a prominent member in the Church, to police when the incidents happened.
This played a big part in explaining why the women took so long to come forward. Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Ariel Anson had said during the trial three women had been silenced by church officials and discouraged from going to the police with their claims. Masterson was eventually charged on June 17, 2020 over the rapes.

Masterson was taken into custody immediately after the verdict on May 31. Masterson’s wife Danny Masterson’s wife, Bijou Phillips, is seen leaving the court alone after the retrial verdict

Reading her victim’s impact statement, N. Trout slammed the actor as a violent man but said she forgave him and hopes he’ll improve in prison.
“You relish in hurting women. It is your addiction. It is without question your favorite thing to do,” she read in her victim impact statement before the sentencing. 
“Life is precious and fragile. Find your heart … Learn something. Read books. Listen to the brightness of nothing and get well. I forgive you,” she added. 

Danny Masterson, [squatting, front row] on the set of “That ’70s Show” with Laura Prepon, Ashton Kutcher, and Wilmer Valderrama

Danny Masterson arrives at court with his wife Bijou Phillips in LA on Nov. 30, 2022. She remained supportive throughout and from all indications was expecting a different outcome at the retrial

Jen B., meanwhile, used her time to reiterate that there was no conspiracy to take down Masterson or the Church of Scientology.  
Prosecutors alleged that Masterson used his celebrity and prominence in the Church of Scientology — where his victims were also members — to skirt the law and avoid accountability.
“Sorry, Leah’s not behind this,” Jen B. said, referencing actress Leah Remini, a former member of the church who has become an outspoken critic. 
The victims testified that they were given drinks by Masterson that made them pass out, and he proceeded to violently rape them.

Danny Masterson [second left], starred in ‘That ’70s Show’ alongside Mila Kunis, Wilmer Valderrama, Ashton Kutcher, Topher Grace and Laura Prepon

Masterson [center back row], was part of the main cast of Fox’s hit sitcom “That ’70s Show” where he played Mr. Hyde

The Los Angeles jury on May 31, 2023, twenty years after the assaults, found “That 70s Show” actor Danny Masterson guilty on two out of three counts of rape.
Masterson, 47, was tried for a second time over charges he raped three women at his Hollywood Hills home in the early 2000s.
The jury deliberated for more than a week before reaching their verdict, finding him guilty in two instances but being hung on a third count.
Jurors convicted Masterson of sexually assaulting victims Jen B. and N. Trout, but were unable to reach a verdict on the allegations against the actor’s former girlfriend, Christina Bixler.
Jurors in the first trial deadlocked in November but in the second trial, Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo allowed more evidence to be heard, including testimony that Masterson had drugged his victims before sexually assaulting them.

The victims testified that Masterson plied them with drinks that made them pass out, then he would violently rape the helpless women. The jury found him guilty at retrial

Prosecutors said N. Trout was raped so viciously that she threw up in her mouth and begged Masterson to at least use a condom.
When the women reported Masterson to Scientology officials, they were told they were not raped and were put through an ethics program.
Victims told the court that Scientology officials also warned them not to report the crime to the police because Masterson was such a high-ranking member of the church.
In a civil case separate from the criminal case, the victims have accused Masterson and the church of stalking, harassing and intimidating them for years in order to scare them from speaking out about Masterson’s abuse.

Masterson allegedly used his standing within the Church of Scientology to avoid accountability for two decades. He has been a member of the church since the age of 15

Actress Leah Remini [left], who is a former Scientologist, has since spoken out against the Church and Masterson [right]

Although a jury found Masterson guilty of two counts of rape following an initial deadlocked vote, the panel could not reach a unanimous verdict on a third count alleging Masterson also assaulted his longtime girlfriend Christina Bixler.
Masterson has denied any wrongdoing but did not testify in court, nor did his lawyers call any witnesses to the stand.
Instead, the defense argued that the sexual acts were consensual, and accused the women of coordinating stories to discredit the former Hollywood star.

Masterson at the Los Angeles courthouse in May when a jury found him guilty of two counts of rape. Masterson has denied any wrongdoing but did not testify in court. He plans to appeal the verdict

Masterson was never charged with any counts of drugging, and with no toxicology evidence to back up the women’s story, the issue will likely play a factor in Masterson’s plan to appeal the verdict.
The Church of Scientology also issued a statement labeling the women’s testimony “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 said.