The lawsuit against Masterson started last month in Los Angeles. Two weeks ago, the prosecution and defense delivered closing arguments and the jury began deliberating. The 46-year-old actor, who says he is innocent, has not testified himself. The three anonymous women who accuse him of rape did take place on the witness stand during the trial.
The women say they were raped by Masterson between 2001 and 2003. At the time, they were members of the Scientology movement, which is known to be secretive. Masterson still is. Two out of three women say Scientology tried to stop them from telling their story. They are all said to have been harassed by Scientology since they went to the police in 2016.
In turn, Masterson’s lawyer claims that Scientology is irrelevant in this case and has even said that the name should not be mentioned in court. According to him, that has happened ‘more than seven hundred times’, he said in his closing argument.
The new case against Masterson will start on March 27. Masterson has coughed up millions in bail and remains at large in the meantime.