Currently behind bars a 30-year sentence for rape, Danny Masterson returns to court.
In a brief hearing today in downtown Los Angeles, Judge Upinder Kalra lifted the long stay of the harassment case filed in 2019 against the That 70’s show actor and the Church of Scientology. Also during the 10-minute session, the Los Angeles Superior Court judge set a trial start date for the case.
At this time, Masterson and the David Miscavige-The Church-led Church is scheduled to go to trial on September 22, 2025. In case you were wondering, court delays and an expected avalanche of discovery filings are among several reasons why that the trial will not begin for almost two years.
The three Jane Does in the civil case, in which Scientology tried unsuccessfully last year for the Supreme Court to intervene, are former members of the Church. In their 2019 complaint, the plaintiffs claimed they were placed under surveillance by the Church, repeatedly harassed and slaughtered as pets after going to the Los Angeles police with their complaints against the actor. Giving out Heartbreaking statements from victims In court, the trio also participated in the criminal case against Masterson, which saw him sentenced on May 31 and sentenced on September 7.
Scientology did not respond today to Deadline’s request for comment on the trial date. However, as a joint report on Monday shows, the Church did not want the suspension to be lifted.
“Church Defendants contend that the current stay should continue because it is unclear whether Plaintiffs are filing an amended complaint,” the Sept. 25 filing said. “At the meeting and conference, the Church defendants asked the plaintiffs if they intended to file an amended complaint, and the plaintiffs responded that they are contemplating an amendment and would notify all parties on September 25, 2023, if they did so. . The suspension of discovery should continue if an amendment is approved to make the parties aware of the current allegations when proposing and responding to discovery.”
Frequently mentioned in the Masterson criminal trials in which the prominent Scientologist was found guilty of two acts of rape, the Church was not charged in that case. However, Scientology is sued in Lea ReminiThe harassment lawsuit filed on August 3. On August 30, the Scientology and the consequences co-host filed an amended complaint alleging that the alleged harassment had increased since the initial complaint was filed in court. Criticized by the Church as “a horrible person” and a “bigot” spouting hate speech over her lawsuit, former prominent Scientologist Remini is also seeking an injunction against the Church.
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Since Jane Doe’s civil case was filed, Scientology has insisted that the issue of harassment and surveillance allegations had no place in court. The Church, notoriously publicity-shy, declared that, because of the documents the plaintiffs had signed as members of Scientology, such issues had to be dealt with behind closed doors in “religious arbitration.”
For a time, it seemed that Scientology and Masterson might have stopped the effort by Jane Does and their families to go public with the case, with the courts backing their stance. However, in early 2022, the Court of Appeals firmly overturned that lower court decision on First Amendment grounds.
Still, the matter was put on hold as Masterson’s first trial, retrial and sentencing progressed. Obviously, while appeals are expected, that is no longer the case in the criminal case, which is why the suspension was lifted today.