Danny Masterson Fails To Get Double Rape Conviction Overturned; No Bias Against Scientology, Appeals Court Rules

Three years after being convicted of raping two women, Danny Masterson on Tuesday saw his appeal hopes disappear and allegations that Scientology was unfairly dragged into his two trials rejected — at least for now.

"The judgment is affirmed," a trio of judges from the Second Appellate District ruled today on Masterson's challenge against L.A. Superior Court Judge Charlaine Olmedo's conduct during the two trials and the subsequent 30-year sentence he received.

"The trial court permitted evidence that the victims had a pending civil action for damages against defendant, Scientology, and Miscavige, alleging claims of harassment and stalking," the 89-page ruling from the appeals panel said on the claims by the That 70s Show star and his faith that Olmedo inappropriately allowed material about the Church, Masterson and his victims' roles in Scientology, its inner workings and leader David Miscavige into the 2022 and 2023 cases. "The trial court also permitted evidence of the settlement agreement between defendant and J.B. and the amount paid to J.B. pursuant to that settlement."

"Admission of Scientology evidence did not violate the First Amendment and was not an abuse of the trial court's discretion," the panel determined, undercutting one of Masterson's main thrusts to get his 30-year sentence dismissed or a new trial. The three judges added: "The jury in this case was not asked to determine the truth or falsity of Scientology doctrine or beliefs. Admission of Scientology evidence for those purposes did not contravene the First Amendment."

With today's ruling, Masterson remains ineligible for parole until 2042.

Representatives of the Church of Scientology did not respond to Deadline's request for comment on today's ruling. However, Masterson's attorneys Cliff Gardner and Eric Multhaup tell Deadline they are going to try to take the matter to the California Supreme Court. Additionally, they intend "to pursue habeas corpus relief based on substantial exculpatory evidence that was never presented to the jury."

Masterson was arrested in 2020 over the alleged assaults that occurred between 2001 and 2003 in his Hollywood Hills house. He had been out on a bail of $3 million until May 31, 2023, when the guilty verdict in his second trial on two of three counts of sexual assault was handed down.

Both of the women Masterson was convicted of raping in were members of Scientology at the time of the assaults.

In depositions and testimony, both women, known as J.B. and N.T. during the trial, said they were told by officials at Scientology not to report the incidents to the police or face expulsion from the Church and its entire community — including their families. The appeal petition of late 2025 says that trial defense lawyer Phillip Cohen should have stared down the judge and the DA's office. Masterson wanted a representative of Scientology to take the stand to lay out its internal processes and dispute the expulsion claims. As the appeals filing of November 2025 made clear, if that testimony had happened, Masterson believed the second trial could have ended differently.

Masterson, a onetime prominent Scientology member. was facing up to 45 years behind bars if found guilty on all three rape counts in the first trial and the subsequent retrial involving J.B. and N.T. After being given his sentence by Olmedo on September 7, 2023 , Masterson was immediately taken into custody, and later denied bail as a "flight risk."

Sweeping up other objections by Masterson involving the LAPD, admitted evidence, pretrial procedures and more, the appeals court Tuesday concluded: "We reject defendant's contention that the cumulative effect of the claimed errors identified in his appeal deprived him of due process of law and a fair trial. Because we have found none of the claimed errors to constitute individual errors, they cannot as a group constitute cumulative error."

Masterson was incarcerated in California's high-security Corcoran State Prison before being moved in early 2024 due to threats. He is currently serving time at the California's Men's Colony in San Luis Obispo, which houses around 3,4000 inmates and is both a medium- and minimum-security facility.