Danny Masterson

Ahead of Danny Masterson's sexual assault trial, jurors were screened for their knowledge of Scientology (and Leah Remini)

Masterson’s former and current relationship and involvement and status as a Scientologist have any impact on how you view him with respect to the government’s burden to prove the charges?” Monday marked the beginning of “voir dire,” in which lawyers from both sides “question the potential jurors in open court.” Many of these questions had to do with Scientology: “Scientology is not a party (in the case), but you’re going to hear about it. According to a new report from [Variety](https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/danny-masterson-jury-selection-scientology-1235406648/), potential jurors in the case are being screened for their knowledge of the controversial religion, which—despite Olmedo’s proclamation—is to a certain degree inextricable from the case. “Many” of those potential jurors were then excused, “though no reason was given for their removal.” [60% off60% Off Fall Knits Sale at Jachs NY](https://www.pjtra.com/t/8-11779-163529-164504?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.jachsny.com%2Fcollections%2F60-off-new-fall-knits-with-free-returns&sid=IV- Some just from living in Los Angeles (“I’ve seen their majestic building,” one person said), from co-workers or friends (only two potential jurors had ever met a Scientologist, both excused), from reading articles, seeing political ads, and at least one from actually reading L. The defense initially attempted to ban any mention of the church from the trial altogether, concerned that Masterson would be unfairly viewed in a negative light simply for belonging to it.

Danny Masterson's trial on multiple rape charges began Tuesday with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office putting the Church of Scientology ...

“Feeling scared,” NT was “ordered” by Masterson to go upstairs, and “they end up in his bathroom shower.” She “recalls being in his shower, there was kissing,” and Masterson allegedly penetrated her before taking the two of them into his bedroom, as he did with Jen B. She also made a point of noting that jurors are not allowed to discuss the trial, the evidence or any matter connected to the case with anyone including “spiritual advisers or therapists.” Still, with the behind-closed-doors “religious arbitration” effort and petition denied by SCOTUS, and former Scientologists among the victims in Masterson’s trial, the methods and potential complicity of the celebrity-rich church will be hard pressed not to be right near the center of attention in the courtroom, now and down the line. Clearly aiming to wrap up his presentation before the lunch break, Mueller outlined the first meeting between a “commanding” Masterson and “NT” in the early 2000s and how she told him “no sex.” She “begins to feel very buzzed” and “blurry,” Mueller said of NT after a glass of wine or two at Masterson’s Hollywood Hills house. After consuming half of a tumbler of a “fruity” drink that Masterson made for her, Jen B said she started to feel “woozy.” Originally there just to pick up some keys, Jen B was pulled over to a Jacuzzi and told that she had 15 seconds to disrobe before he tossed her in the water. Interrupted by the defense at this point, the ADA told the jury that Christina B was instructed by Scientology advisers that she was supposed to provide sex to Masterson whenever he wanted it because he was such a big contributor and supporter to the church. PT, the defense objected again to Mueller’s mentions of Scientology in his opening statement, and all the lawyers were called up to confer with the judge. Starting with a description of the alleged September 2002 rape by Masterson of an intoxicated “Jen B” in his Hollywood Hills home — the accusers’ real names are not being used in court — Mueller noted the complexity of the case and the external forces at play. “This case will also be about certain policies that each of these alleged victims understood they needed to follow,” Mueller said earlier in the day about the David Miscavige-led Church of Scientology, of which Masterson — who was in the courtroom today — and the trio of accusers at the heart of the trial are or were members. In a tie and non-matching blazer and pants, Masterson watched in the near-silent courtroom as Mueller then detailed his relationship with “Christina B,” their dating and the increasingly violent sex he supposedly forced on her. “I wasn’t out of it, I understand what was going on,” a 2017 quote from Jen B on the video monitor said, contradicting the Assistant DA’s assurance that the woman was confused and in and out of consciousness during the alleged attack from Masterson. “Three nights with three women 20 years and whether or not the government can prove beyond a reasonable doubt” that Danny Masterson raped them is what the whole trial is about, he said to the courtroom, wrapping it up at about 2:30 p.m.

Opening statements got underway Oct. 18 in the trial of actor Danny Masterson, who has pleaded not guilty to three counts of forcible rape stemming from ...

"She was really traumatized by this," Mueller said, and reported it to her ethics officer at the Church of Scientology. Christina said she ultimately reported Masterson after a 2001 evening out that ended with her not remembering a thing until she woke up the next morning, at Masterson's house, in pain and bleeding from what felt to her like tearing in her rectal area. During one such instance in November 2001, she started screaming and tried to fight him off, then resorted to grabbing his hair—which was against a rule she said Masterson had about not touching his hair or face during sex—and he hit her in the face. Christina said that when she asked Masterson what happened, he laughed and told her he'd had anal sex with her while she was unconscious. She was feeling fuzzy, her account continued, and Masterson brought her upstairs into the shower, where he started kissing her and first initiated penetration. Trout, said that she was invited back to Masterson's house after a night out with friends in Hollywood. Another testified that a church lawyer came to her home and warned her that she would be expelled from the religion if she reported Masterson to authorities. She took the pillow from under her head and shoved it in his face, but he in turn pushed it in her face and she passed out again. At one point, Mueller said in recounting Jen's story, Masterson heard someone coming up the stairs and grabbed a gun from his nightstand. was at a club with friends one evening and after previous plans for a ride home and a place to stay overnight went awry, she and others ended up at Masterson's house. He gave her a red-colored beverage—her first alcoholic drink that night, she said—and within 20 or 30 minutes of drinking only part of it, she recalled becoming disoriented. (as she's being identified in court) and Masterson that preceded the incident she reported to police: Jen said she had planned to meet up with her then-best friend Brie Shaffer, Masterson's personal assistant at the time, with other friends at the actor's house.

Danny Masterson, former star of That '70s Show, faces 3 women in court who say he raped them two decades ago at a trial whose key figures are current or ...

Masterson was one of the first Hollywood figures to be prosecuted in the #MeToo era. The third woman said Masterson raped her on a night in 2003 after texting her to come to his house. In 2016, she connected and shared stories with the woman who says she was raped while in a relationship with Masterson. The third woman went to police in 2017. “I don’t think the general public has an overwhelmingly positive view, I think there is a lot of skepticism.” “It can feel heavy-handed when you have the government bringing someone’s religion into a prosecution,” said Baker, who is not involved in the case. “I think leaving the Church of Scientology out of it is a good plan,” said Emily D. And the trial’s witness list is full of members and former members of the church, which has a strong presence in Los Angeles and has counted many famous figures among its members. Masterson’s initial attorney in the case, Thomas Mesereau, emphasized his client’s Scientology connections, saying his arrest was the result of anti-religious bias from police and prosecutors. But she said she would allow its discussion as a reason why the women delayed reporting to authorities. All three accusers have since left, and they said the church’s insistence that it deal internally with problems between members made them hesitant at first to go to authorities. One of the women was Masterson’s longtime girlfriend.

Masterson, a prominent Scientologist, is accused of violently raping three women who also belonged to the church.

[a civil suit](https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-01-20/appeals-court-says-former-scientologists-can-take-the-church-to-court) filed against the church in 2019 alleging that they were stalked and harassed by church officials after reporting Masterson to police. Olmedo said, however, that the women could not bring up a dog that was allegedly killed and could only speak in general terms about the alleged harassment they faced after reporting the incidents. But in a hearing earlier this month, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Charlaine Olmedo ruled that the alleged victims could discuss how Scientology caused them to delay reporting the incidents to the authorities and their belief that the church’s policies barred them from talking to police. Masterson has pleaded not guilty to the charges and claimed that he only had consensual sex with the women. At times, he gently shook his head and raised his eyebrows as the deputy district attorney described the incidents in graphic detail. During his opening statement, Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Reinhold Mueller gave an overview of each of the three alleged sexual assaults from the early 2000s that Masterson, a prominent Scientologist, is charged with, as well as other uncharged incidents.

Opening statements could begin early in the 46-year-old Danny Masterson's trial, judge plans to keep rumblings of the Church of Scientology to a minimum.

Masterson was one of the first Hollywood figures to be prosecuted in the #MeToo era. The third woman said Masterson raped her on a night in 2003 after texting her to come to his house. “I don’t think the general public has an overwhelmingly positive view, I think there is a lot of skepticism.” “It can feel heavy handed when you have the government bringing someone’s religion into a prosecution,” said Baker, who is not involved in the case. “I think leaving the Church of Scientology out of it is a good plan,” said Emily D. Masterson’s initial attorney in the case, Thomas Mesereau, emphasized his client’s Scientology connections, saying his arrest was the result of anti-religious bias from police and prosecutors.

A Los Angeles prosecutor says rape allegations by three women against “That '70s Show” actor Danny Masterson contain some of the same disturbing elements.

Masterson was one of the first Hollywood figures to be charged in the #MeToo era. In 2016, she connected and shared stories with the ex-girlfriend who is one of the accusers. She set ground rules that she wouldn’t have sex with him and told him “no sex” multiple times as fooling around progressed, Mueller said. The trial’s witness list is full of members and former members of the church, which has a strong presence in Los Angeles and has counted many famous figures among its members. One of them said he dragged her to his bed where she regained consciousness to find him having sex with her. A third woman, an ex-girlfriend, said she woke up to find him on top of her.

Actor Danny Masterson stands with his lawyers Thomas Mesereau and Sharon Appelbaum as he is arraigned on three rape charges in separate incidents in 2001 and ...

Oz’s Senate Campaign](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/10/dr-oz-dog-killing-pennsylvania-senate-race?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-101122)? [Prince Andrew’s Nosedive From Grace](https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/10/prince-andrew-documentary?itm_content=footer-recirc&itm_campaign=more-great-stories-101122)—This Time With Video The Supreme Court recently denied the church’s attempt to have that case decided through Scientology-run arbitration.) (The three women are also part of an ongoing civil suit filed against Masterson and the church in 2019, with the accusers claiming that they were harassed after finally going to the police. (Reports of the allegations began circulating in late 2017 amid the onset of the #MeToo movement. For as long as Scientology has loomed as an animating force of celebrity life, the organization’s relationship to fame has been cloaked in intrigue and mystery.

A prosecutor described rape allegations by three women Tuesday against “That '70s Show” actor Danny Masterson from two decades ago that contained some of ...

Masterson was one of the first Hollywood figures to be prosecuted in the #MeToo era. In 2016, she connected and shared stories with the ex-girlfriend who is one of the accusers. [Harvey Weinstein](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/harvey-weinsteins-rape-conviction-upheld-new-york-appeals-court-rcna31654), which transformed the #MeToo movement into an international reckoning. The trial’s witness list is full of members and former members of the church, which has a strong presence in Los Angeles and has counted many famous figures among its members. One of the women had been Masterson’s longtime girlfriend. One of them said he dragged her to his bed where she regained consciousness to find him having sex with her.

A prosecutor on Tuesday described rape allegations by three women against That '70s Show actor Danny Masterson from two decades ago that contained some of ...

Masterson was one of the first Hollywood figures to be charged in the #MeToo era. In 2016, she connected and shared stories with the ex-girlfriend who is one of the accusers. The trial's witness list is full of members and former members of the church, which has a strong presence in Los Angeles and has counted many famous figures among its members. One of the women had been Masterson's longtime girlfriend. "You essentially become an enemy of the church," Mueller said. One of them said he dragged her to his bed, where she regained consciousness to find him having sex with her.

Danny Masterson, former star of the long-running sitcom 'That '70s Show,' is about to face three women in court who say he raped them two decades ago at a ...

[Autos](https://www.ctvnews.ca/autos) [BMW investing US$1.7B in S. The announcement comes as a formula shortage continues. Jean Carroll, a magazine columnist who says he raped her in the mid-1990s in a department store dressing room. last year, a crisis that has disproportionately claimed Black and Hispanic women as victims, according to a government report released Wednesday. Increased transmission of cold and flu viruses are leaving people scrambling for cough syrup and decongestants. Less than one week into the Public Order Emergency Commission's hearings examining the federal government's invocation of the Emergencies Act, hundreds of documents have already been made public. Weinstein's second rape and sexual assault trial -- he's already been convicted in New York -- is happening simultaneously, just down the hall from Masterson's. Masterson was one of the first Hollywood figures to be prosecuted in the .MeToo era. One of the women had been Masterson's longtime girlfriend. The trial's witness list is full of members and former members of the church, which has a strong presence in Los Angeles and has counted many famous figures among its members. "You essentially become an enemy of the church," Mueller said. "If you speak to each other you will contaminate this case," they were told, defense attorney Phillip Cohen said in Los Angeles Superior Court.