Danny Masterson Gets New Rape Trial Date

Danny Masterson has been given a new rape trial date after the actor’s previous trial ended with a hung jury. According to Deadline, Judge Charlaine Olmedo has set March 29 as the date jury selection will begin for The Ranch alum’s second trial. Additionally, the outlet also noted that L.A. County Deputy District Attorneys Reinhold Mueller and Ariel Anson confirmed they will prosecute the second trial.

The first sexual assault trial against Masterson came to a close in November, with the jury hung on all charges. Per a report from Variety, Judge Olmedo advised the parties involved that the jurors were not able to reach a unanimous verdict after nearly two weeks of deliberation. She read a note from the jurors that stated: “We are not even close to coming to a unanimous decision on any count, and are convinced this will not change.”

Masterson is best known for playing high school slacker Steven Hyde on That ’70s Show for the show’s eight-season run on Fox. Years later, he and Ashton Kutcher, another star of That ’70s Show, re-teamed for The Ranch, on Netflix. However, in 2017, multiple women filed sexual assault reports against Masterson, prompting Netflix to fire him. Those allegations became charges on “three counts of forcible rape relating to incidents involving three women from 2001 to 2003.” Per Variety, the jurors advised Judge Olmedo that “they were divided on each charge. The split was two for guilty and 10 for not guilty on Count 1; four for guilty and eight for not guilty on Count 2; and five for guilty and seven for not guilty on Count 3.”

Deadline previously reported that Masterson’s trial got off to a tense start with Mueller proclaiming it to be “three different sexual assault cases, in fact, three different cases of forcible rape.” He also mentioned the Church of Scientology, accusing the organization of attempting to help Masterson cover up the reported incidents. Phillip Cohen, a member of Masterson’s defense team, took the floor at one point to present an argument, but things seemed to get very off-track.

While giving a “couple of highlights” about the prosecution’s case, Cohen claimed that the alleged victims disregarded LAPD advice and maintained communication with each other. He also indicated that the defense believed the victims were seeking to shake down Masterson for “oodles and oodles of money” that he earned from his work on That ’70s Show. As Cohen spoke, the prosecution brought up a number of objections. 

The objections caused Cohen to grow visibly frustrated. Finally, Judge Olmedo frustratedly called both the prosecution and the defense to the bench and essentially ordered them to tone down their tempers. Masterson faces a possible maximum sentence of 45 years to life in state prison.