Actor Danny Masterson has been found guilty by a jury on two counts of rape while the third charge remained deadlocked. The verdict was issued on Wednesday in Downtown Los Angeles. Masterson could be sentenced from 30 years to life imprisonment. On August 4, there will be a hearing.
Masterson’s first trial, during which he pleaded not guilty, started in October and ended in a mistrial in the following month. The jury failed to reach a verdict with two jurors voting for conviction on one count of rape, four voting for conviction on a second count of rape, and five voting for conviction on a third count of rape.
Following the mistrial, Masterson’s lawyer, Philip Cohen, stated that the case solely revolves around the trustworthiness of the three defendants. He added that this credibility can only be assessed by examining and comparing the inconsistent statements provided by the women.
Despite his team’s efforts to dismiss the case, they were unsuccessful, and a retrial started last month. Masterson’s retrial focused on three cases, some of which are “unexplained”. The actor has denied all allegations, and his lawyers have maintained that the sexual encounters were consensual.
One of Masterson’s most famous roles was playing Steven Hyde on “That ’70s Show.” The show aired on Fox from 1998 to 2006, and starred Mila Kunis, Ashton Kutcher, Laura Prepon, Topher Grace, and Wilmer Valderrama.
In 2016, Kutcher and Masterson were both actors on Netflix‘s “The Ranch”. However, due to rape allegations against Masterson, he was removed from the show by the producers and Netflix. Masterson expressed his disappointment with the decision.
