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Danny Masterson Rape Trial Jurors Restart Deliberations After Two Contract Covid, Are Dismissed
The jury in actor Danny Masterson's rape trial, which said it was deadlocked before Thanksgiving, has begun new deliberations after two of its original members contracted COVID-19 during the holiday break.
Two deliberating jurors at the rape trial of former “That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson were dismissed Monday because they have been diagnosed with Covid-19.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo replaced the jurors with two alternates and told the panel to start over with deliberations.
The jurors were returning Monday from a week off after telling Olmedo on Nov. 18 that they were deadlocked and could not reach a verdict on any of the three rape counts against Masterson after nearly three days of deliberations.
Olmedo had already agreed to allow jurors Thanksgiving week off. She told them it was too soon to declare a mistrial and to keep deliberating when they returned from the holiday break on Nov. 28.
Masterson, 46, is charged with the rape of three women, including a former girlfriend, in his Hollywood Hills home between 2001 and 2003.
He has pleaded not guilty, and the defense said the acts were consensual.
He did not testify during the trial. His lawyer presented no defense testimony and instead focused on inconsistencies in the accounts of the three accusers, who he said changed their stories over time and spoke with each other before going to police.
