The "That '70s Show" star is accused of raping three women in the early 2000s. An accuser testified she was asked to sign a $400,000 nondisclosure agreement or risk being excommunicated from the Church of Scientology.
Testimony continued this week in the Los Angeles rape trial of “That ‘70s Show” star Danny Masterson as the Church of Scientology ran a new advertisement during the Lakers’ season opener.
Masterson is a well known Scientologist, and so were all three of the women who are accusing Masterson of raping them in the early 2000s.
“Whatever you have heard, if you haven’t heard it from us, I can assure you, we are not what you expect,” Scientology leader David Miscavige says in the commercial.
Attorney Brian Claypool says the timing of the ad at the start of Masterson’s trial is “no coincidence.”
In court, one of the accusers testified that Masterson tried to buy her silence by getting her to sign a $400,000 nondisclosure agreement. She testified that she either had to sign the agreement or risk being excommunicated from the Church of Scientology.
A Scientology spokesperson said in a statement, “The Church has no policy prohibiting or discouraging members from reporting criminal conduct of Scientologists, or of anyone, to law enforcement.”
Earlier this month, Masterson’s attorney asked for the trial to be delayed until after the mayoral election in Los Angeles, after candidate Rick Caruso ran a negative ad showing challenger Karen Bass speaking highly of Scientology during a speech in 2010.
Bass says she now “absolutely condemn(s) their practices.”
Masterson has pleaded not guilty and claims the sex was consensual.
A Scientology spokesperson told Inside Edition it would be inappropriate for them to comment on Masterson’s case, because, they say, the Church is not involved. They also declined to comment on the Los Angeles mayoral race, saying they don’t get involved in politics in any way.
