LOS ANGELES – Actor Danny Masterson was convicted in May of raping two women at his Hollywood Hills home in the early 2000s and subsequently sentenced Thursday to 30 years to life in prison. He was famously known for playing the role of Steven Hyde in “That ’70s Show.”
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo ordered the sentence of Masterson, 47, after he reportedly listened to statements from the women he was convicted of sexually assaulting in 2003, the Daily Wire reported.
“Mr. Masterson, I know that you’re sitting here steadfast in your claims of innocence, and thus no doubt feeling victimized by a justice system that has failed you,” Olmedo told the actor before handing down the sentence, according to The Associated Press. “But Mr. Masterson, you are not the victim here. Your actions 20 years ago took away another person’s voice, and choice. One way or another you will have to come to terms with your prior actions, and their consequences.”
Danny Masterson (Red Carpet Report via Wikipedia Commons)
Masterson was found guilty of two counts of rape in a retrial in May after several women he met through the Church of Scientology accused him of sex-related crimes in the early 2000s, reported the Daily Wire.
According to reports, the Los Angeles County jury of seven women and five men reached the verdict after seven days of deliberation, but remained deadlocked on another sexual assault charge involving an ex-girlfriend, Chrissie Carnell-Bixler, with 8 of 12 jurors favoring a guilty verdict.
