Actor Danny Masterson, of 'That 70s Show' charged with raping multiple women *Mistrial 2022* *Retrial 2023 Guilty*

[Soulmagent]

I am opting out of this . I do not know enough about this case ,but victim 1 and the COS being involved lets me know ,that none of us will be able to filter out the lies or the truth and these people draw lines in the sand just to hang you in the lines. .
my feelings are only feelings ,and not facts so I guess if we continue to let the courts make our hard dessicions and explain things for us -this is what resolution looks like ? I dunno but things seems off and weird everywhere in Danny's sphere.

 

[Nova]

Do you think AK - who no doubt feels he's almost like family - would have written that letter had he taken the time to check that the letter wasn't going to be sealed?
Is he that loyal a friend?

BTW, I think what you're asking is a really good question.

You also ask a good question, and I don't know Mr. Kutcher well enough to know what he would have done had he expected his letter to get so much public attention.

<modsnip - not an approved source>

That may suggest Kutcher would NOT have written a letter if he knew it might hurt his reputation, but the contexts of the two events are very, very different.

 

[crussell821]

He's utterly despicable.

At the same time I was just reading this part of Jane Doe 1's testimony in relation to forcible anal rape followed by being pressured by the CoS to make amends etc. (She's just been asked to describe the conversations she had with others about the assault etc and Pros asks her whether she & DM then had reconciliation or resolution as per the CoS's plan etc)

Did Mr. Masterson say anything to you about what happened?

Yes

What did he say?

He called, he said he fell off a raft and hit his butt on a rock on a trip with Ashton Kutcher and he was sitting on a donut, and so now he knew what it felt like and so we're good now, right? (She's getting emotional relating this.)

ETA here's the link MISTRIAL AVERTED AGAIN: Danny Masterson Trial, Day 6, Morning break report

What a sadist!! My God!!

 

[cottonweaver]

You also ask a good question, and I don't know Mr. Kutcher well enough to know what he would have done had he expected his letter to get so much public attention.

There is other info on SM that suggests Kutcher is very concerned with his public image. (I can't be more specific because I haven't seen the info on MSM.) The info is not related to the charges against DM except that DM and Chrissie B. were aware of Kutcher's concern.

That may suggest Kutcher would NOT have written a letter if he knew it might hurt his reputation, but the contexts of the two events are very, very different.

yes, like you say, it's hard to know & can't post speculation on the other possibilities.

Anyway, I did wonder why, as such a good friend - & seeing as he referenced ' triple injustice' etc in letter to Judge- why he didn't attend trial, even just a day, to show support to his 'brother.'
(AFAIK he didn't, but hopefully somebody will correct me, if I'm wrong)

ETA - reason for mentioning that was that you made me think, what would I do, incl if I was a celeb & my closest BFF/like family was being prosecuted

 

[Nova]

An interview of Ashton and Mila has resurfaced where they discussed their first kiss on their show which was Mila's first kiss ever. He was 19 and she was 14. Also Danny made a bet with Ashton to french kiss her. Big laughs were had.

I saw it on YouTube. THAT clip hasn't aged well, has it?!

Granted, Kunis is telling the tale as a funny story and is laughing throughout. Apparently--at least at the time of the interview--she didn't feel "damaged" by whatever occurred.

But it's hard for me to imagine having an adult-kissing scene with a 14-year-old without being VERY concerned with her comfort and well-being. I'd want to discuss very seriously what would be done and what would NOT be done; I would not make joke bets with my buddy behind the girl's back.

 

[Nova]

rsbm

Except the content of the letters was utter nonsense considering what they knew when they "wrote" them. Just one example, from Mila Kunis's letter:

I have always known Danny to be an ethical, honest person, who lived with the highest standards in work and family. I have always known Danny to be a central figure in my peer group, because of his integrity, his stance against drugs, his abhorrence of violence and most of all the respect he demonstrates toward women and children.

Can she say he was honest and had integrity if he never admitted the years of rapes and abuse of women in his life? Besides physical abuse, there was lots of cruel psychological abuse. She also can't say he abhorred violence when he repeatedly committed violent rape. Or even that he was against drugs when he roofied women before he raped them.

The letters are basically denying what the court just decided. It's one thing to say his daughter needs him, which is a common type of statement in support of a lighter sentence, but another to tout him for traits which are clearly false.

One wonders what CoS might have had on these people to get them to put their signatures to the letters. jmo

With respect, you don't seem to understand how these letters are constructed. (Let's be clear: it is almost certain that Kutcher and Kunis had their letters drafted for them by lawyers.)

Such letters are written from the p.o.v. of the writer, and contain only what the writer knows from personal experience with the defendant.

In your post above, you list a lot of very good points about DM that are now known to all of us.

But it would be hearsay for Kutcher or Kunis to include those points in their letters. Even though they have met the victims as well as DM, they are NOT witnesses to DM's violence against women (as far as we know).

The claims Kunis makes above only deal with what she has personally witnessed. Is she lying? Exaggerating? Maybe so; neither you nor I knows. Same goes for Kutcher and his letter.

***

You are not the first to hypothesize that the CofS essentially blackmailed some of those who wrote letters on DM's behaf, including K&K. That could be true despite what I wrote above.

 

[cottonweaver]

Ex-Scientologist claims Kutcher 'knows the kind of guy Masterson was'

A former Scientologist claimed Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis did not know their letters supporting Danny Masterson would be made public.

www.dailymail.co.uk

ETA and another article, same day Kathy Griffin slams Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis
'Kathy Griffin has recalled attempting to turn in her own brother for allegedly molesting two children....'Blood was not thicker than water in my case...'

Had to google who KG is.
Anyway, after thinking about it, blackmail/threats doesn't feel like a motivation, just cause after 3 decades together with CoS staffers ever present, AK could have threatened to reciprocate. Stale-mate

 

[Lonicera]

Are Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis members of Scientology? If this is not the case, one can imagine that they have known DM for a long time and that they have forged friendships with him. We must not be blind: sometimes we are wrong about friends or even family members. It happened to me: I had not suspected anything, I had not imagined what my ex-husband could do . It’s terrible to realize that we didn’t see it coming. . (traduction reverso)

 

[tlcya]

I read the letters. I didn't find them to be lies. the couple spoke of the Danny they knew and experienced. Rapists don't rape in front of witnesses. I don't find it difficult at all to believe that they DM they experienced was exactly as they described. I also don't find it difficult to believe that DM showed a much darker side to his victims.

In my mind the two can co-exist and I don't fault Ashton and Mila for writing letters that they didn't realize would be released publicly putting targets on their backs.

 

[sds71]

Danny Masterson 'Always Thought He Was Going to Get Away with It,' Says Prosecutor

Danny Masterson was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for raping two women

people.com

 

[cottonweaver]

Danny Masterson 'Always Thought He Was Going to Get Away with It,' Says Prosecutor

Danny Masterson was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for raping two women

people.com

IIRC, from the 90s when its abuse started to become a big issue ( spiking and sexual assault) traces of it soon leave your system. ( which is why many experts over here have termed it the ' rapists weapon of choice, including in the gay community)

 

[Smelly Squirrel]

Jane Doe 5

https://twitter.com/x/status/1702045133577867361

So Manny people are telling me how Brave and Courageous I am for coming forward as Jane Doe 5. They don’t know the half of it! It is the bravest thing I have ever done in my life. But It was hearing about the other victims that woke me up and shook me to my core! It was only then I felt the courage to Step out of my comfort zone, force myself to terms with what Masterson did to me all those years ago, reawakening the pain, embarrassment and anger that I have pushed inside for so long, being on display, having everyone in my life know what he did to me when it was hidden in a box for years!! I come from a generation and a country where as a women you are expected to “put up with it and move on” “don’t make a scene” “ what will the neighbours say” “don’t embarrass the family” “say 7 Hail Mary’s and be on your way”“ pretend it didn’t happen” …..well those days are over folks. This whole ordeal has made me even stronger, more wilful, and more determined then ever to stand up and be seen and to fight back against abuse of any kind.

 

[cottonweaver]

Kathleen Jenkins and how she fits into the Prosecution's case in trial 2, by Tony Ortega. Included in his report - why Trisha Vessey testified against DM in the first trial but not the second. Opening statement a big improvement for prosecution at Danny Masterson retrial

Link to KJ's testimony in trial 2 ( scroll down the page) Kathleen J, uncharged Danny Masterson accuser, testifies to wrap party incident

Trisha Vessey's testimony, trial 1 can be found by clicking below for the links to trial day 'Day Eighteen' ( The first incident Vessey describes is in 1996, the subsequent ones are also linked. 1996 DM would've been 20 yrs old, appearing in TV show Cybill at the time)
The Danny Masterson prosecution: Our reporting at the Underground Bunker | The Underground Bunker

Worth reading both accounts. If I picked out all of the stand-out details from both witnesses' accounts at trial, this post would be too long

 

[thebedbug]

Kathleen Jenkins and how she fits into the Prosecution's case in trial 2, by Tony Ortega. Included in his report - why Trisha Vessey testified against DM in the first trial but not the second. Opening statement a big improvement for prosecution at Danny Masterson retrial

Link to KJ's testimony in trial 2 ( scroll down the page) Kathleen J, uncharged Danny Masterson accuser, testifies to wrap party incident

Trisha Vessey's testimony, trial 1 can be found by clicking below for the links to trial day 'Day Eighteen' ( The first incident Vessey describes is in 1996, the subsequent ones are also linked. 1996 DM would've been 20 yrs old, appearing in TV show Cybill at the time)
The Danny Masterson prosecution: Our reporting at the Underground Bunker | The Underground Bunker

Worth reading both accounts. If I picked out all of the stand-out details from both witnesses' accounts at trial, this post would be too long

thanks for posting this. offers a little insight into the differences between the two trials.

<modsnip - not victim friendly>

more compelling to me is evidence that DM admitted to certain things (re: another accuser) in a CoS mediation session or something?

 

[cottonweaver]

thanks for posting this. offers a little insight into the differences between the two trials.

maybe it was just me - but that testimony in the 2nd link was hard to follow. could've just been the page format. from what I did get - and I understand she is an uncharged accuser - I did not find her testimony very convincing. there seemed to be some very "coached" language and weirdly specific memories of certain things... while others were conveniently lost. absent other evidence, as a juror, I'd probably figure this was just as likely a revisionist interpretation of events from someone feeling guilty about cheating on their spouse vs. an actual assault.

more compelling to me is evidence that DM admitted to certain things (re: another accuser) in a CoS mediation session or something?

Have just been back to skim KJ's testimony to take another look.
Which memories were lost? I am struggling to track those.
Kathleen J, uncharged Danny Masterson accuser, testifies to wrap party incident

Her testimony is about half way down the page or can be found by word search for the word ' nervous'

 

[Rolypolyoly]

thanks for posting this. offers a little insight into the differences between the two trials.

maybe it was just me - but that testimony in the 2nd link was hard to follow. could've just been the page format. from what I did get - and I understand she is an uncharged accuser - I did not find her testimony very convincing. there seemed to be some very "coached" language and weirdly specific memories of certain things... while others were conveniently lost. absent other evidence, as a juror, I'd probably figure this was just as likely a revisionist interpretation of events from someone feeling guilty about cheating on their spouse vs. an actual assault.

more compelling to me is evidence that DM admitted to certain things (re: another accuser) in a CoS mediation session or something?

She said her husband was in bed asleep when she got back to the room after her rape, she never told him until she broke down at a later time when Mastersons face appeared on her TV, and them she told him. If she cheated on him and had got away with it, why in earth would she bring it up later and frame it as rape as opposed to just keeping quiet in the first place?!

 

[cottonweaver]

Has there been any analysis as to what changed between the 2 trials? Was there new evidence? Better prosecution/worse defense?

It seems like the first jury largely believed he was not guilty - especially for counts 1 and 2, while being less sure about count 3. In the second trial he was convicted on counts 1 and 2, with count 3 remaining in doubt.

BTW
1 & 2 were unanimous.
On count three it was 8 to 4.

 

[Cedars]

Has there been any analysis as to what changed between the 2 trials? Was there new evidence? Better prosecution/worse defense?

It seems like the first jury largely believed he was not guilty - especially for counts 1 and 2, while being less sure about count 3. In the second trial he was convicted on counts 1 and 2, with count 3 remaining in doubt.

Apparently, 2nd trial allowed expert witness testimony about the inner workings of Scientology. Not sure how much it influenced the jury, of course, but the expert witness was a scientology escapee. Saw an interview with her about her testimony on yt show called Cults to Consciousness.

JMO, but it's possible this case is just a battle in the bigger war against Scientology.

 

[cottonweaver]

Apparently, 2nd trial allowed expert witness testimony about the inner workings of Scientology. Not sure how much it influenced the jury, of course, but the expert witness was a scientology escapee. Saw an interview with her about her testimony on yt show called Cults to Consciousness.

JMO, but it's possible this case is just a battle in the bigger war against Scientology.

That would make for a successful appeal by CoS

ETA... which is not going to happen IMO. ( When Olmedo limited the testimony on CoS practices & Headley's testimony, she wasn't doing that on a whim)

 

[tara83]

Apparently, 2nd trial allowed expert witness testimony about the inner workings of Scientology. Not sure how much it influenced the jury, of course, but the expert witness was a scientology escapee. Saw an interview with her about her testimony on yt show called Cults to Consciousness.

JMO, but it's possible this case is just a battle in the bigger war against Scientology.

No it is about a rapist who damaged victims for the rest of their lives.