Danny Masterson has determined to not take the stand in his personal protection in his rape trial.
The previous That ’70s Present star at this time informed Decide Charlaine Olemedo that he wouldn’t testify within the matter after discussions along with his authorized group.
With the prosecution concluding their case after virtually a month of testimony and the Phillip Cohen-led protection opting to name no witnesses, closing arguments are penciled in to begin tomorrow. After that, the matter of three counts of forcible rape will go to the jury for deliberations.
Los Angeles Superior Court docket Decide Olemdo has lengthy mentioned she hoped to have the DTLA trial resolved earlier than the start of the week of Thanksgiving – a goal she seems fairly set to hit at this level.
First arrested in 2020 and free on simply over a $3 million bail price ticket, Masterson is a attainable most sentence of 45 years to life in California state jail if discovered responsible. The actor, who subsequently was fired from Netflix’s comedy The Ranch on the finish of 2017 as claims turned identified, all the time has denied he had nonconsensual intercourse between 2001 and 2003 with the alleged victims or anybody else ever.
The trio of Jane Does took the stand within the trial, as did a fourth alleged sufferer final week. In contrast to the three Jane Does within the case and Masterson himself, Jane Doe #4 will not be, nor has ever been a Scientologist. Former outstanding Scientologist Lisa Marie Presley was on the prosecution witness checklist, however Deputy DA Reinhold Mueller selected on November 9 to not name the rock scion after Decide Olemdo severly restricted the scope of her attainable testimony.
In addition to this prison case, there’s additionally a at the moment paused civil case that the three alleged victims in Masterson rape trial and others filed in 2019 in opposition to the Church of Scientology and the actor. It claims that the ex-Scientology plaintiffs have been harassed, stalked and even noticed pets killed by the church and church associates for going to the LAPD with their allegations in opposition to Masterson.
Considerably surprisingly, the Supreme Court docket final month rejected Scientology’s petition to take up the swimsuit after a California appellate court docket earlier this yr dominated that the ex-church members had a First Modification proper to not be held to the stipulations of a spiritual organizations as soon as they’ve left.
One other LASC choose dominated that the civil trial may resume in mid-December, one the prison trial is over.
