In March, we broke the news that the Los Angeles Police Department is investigating That 70’s Show actor and Scientologist Danny Masterson over the rape allegations of three different women who were all Scientologists at the time of the incidents, which occurred between 2001 and 2003.
That investigation is ongoing, but now we’ve learned just how seriously Masterson is taking it as he has hired renowned criminal defense attorney Tom Mesereau to represent him.
Mesereau has already made contact with the LAPD to tell them that Masterson denies the rape allegations and that Mesereau, with the help of a private investigator named Scott Ross, has been gathering witnesses of their own to back up Masterson’s denials.
We emailed Mesereau and Ross asking them to comment about taking on Masterson’s defense, but they did not respond to us.
Mesereau is most famous for defending Michael Jackson in a 2005 child molestation trial that acquitted the singer on all 14 counts. Mesereau also represented boxer Mike Tyson in a rape investigation, and charges were dropped (Tyson had previously been convicted of rape in another case.) Other famous Mesereau clients include actor Robert Blake and music mogul Suge Knight.
The investigation of Masterson has been a complex one. One of the women — we’re calling her Victim A — discovered only last year that she wasn’t the only one who had reported to the Church of Scientology that Masterson had attacked her. Last fall Victim A reported her allegations to the LAPD for the first time. When she did so, the LAPD reactivated another case against Masterson that had been reported in 2004 by a woman we’re calling Victim B. A third woman, Victim C, then came forward and also made her allegations to the LAPD.
We previously reported that Victim A wrote a lengthy letter to LAPD Chief Charlie Beck, complaining about the way the investigation was being handled and wondering if the police department was compromised by its relationship to the Church of Scientology. The church’s role, meanwhile, we detailed in a story about Victim B, who was made to go through weeks of intense interrogations at the church that cost her tens of thousands of dollars, and that asked her to look for evil acts she had committed in her past lives that might explain her victimization in her current life. Victim C, meanwhile, was backed up by a veteran actress who, only after we wrote about her account, was finally interviewed by the LAPD.
And now, our sources report, Masterson’s attorney is countering with his own investigation with the help of private investigator Scott Ross. It’s not unusual for a defense attorney to hire an investigator to gather evidence for a defense, but in December, after an episode of Leah Remini’s A&E series about Scientology, Ross publicly stated on Twitter that he would never work on behalf of the church.
We noticed that Remini responded to that tweet a few days ago, and Ross didn’t respond:
We’ll let you know if we get word from either Mesereau or Ross.
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HowdyCon 2017: Denver, June 23-25 at the Residence Inn Denver City Center. Go here to start making your plans, and book your room soon!
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Bernie Headley has not seen his daughter Stephanie in 4,745 days.
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Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 2,169 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 2,144 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 500 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin in 4,802 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 909 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis for 1,311 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 1,184 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 765 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike in 1,270 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on May 9, 2017 at 07:00
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Our book, The Unbreakable Miss Lovely: How the Church of Scientology tried to destroy Paulette Cooper, is on sale at Amazon in paperback, Kindle, and audiobook versions. We’ve posted photographs of Paulette and scenes from her life at a separate location. Reader Sookie put together a complete index. More information about the book, and our 2015 book tour, can also be found at the book’s dedicated page.
The Best of the Underground Bunker, 1995-2016 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Undergound Bunker (2012-2016), The Village Voice (2008-2012), New Times Los Angeles (1999-2002) and the Phoenix New Times (1995-1999)
Learn about Scientology with our numerous series with experts…
BLOGGING DIANETICS: We read Scientology’s founding text cover to cover with the help of L.A. attorney and former church member Vance Woodward
UP THE BRIDGE: Claire Headley and Bruce Hines train us as Scientologists
GETTING OUR ETHICS IN: Jefferson Hawkins explains Scientology’s system of justice
SCIENTOLOGY MYTHBUSTING: Historian Jon Atack discusses key Scientology concepts
Other links: Shelly Miscavige, ten years gone | The Lisa McPherson story told in real time | The Cathriona White stories | The Leah Remini ‘Knowledge Reports’ | Hear audio of a Scientology excommunication | Scientology’s little day care of horrors | Whatever happened to Steve Fishman? | Felony charges for Scientology’s drug rehab scam | Why Scientology digs bomb-proof vaults in the desert | PZ Myers reads L. Ron Hubbard’s “A History of Man” | Scientology’s Master Spies | Scientology’s Private Dancer | The mystery of the richest Scientologist and his wayward sons | Scientology’s shocking mistreatment of the mentally ill | Scientology boasts about assistance from Google | The Underground Bunker’s Official Theme Song | The Underground Bunker FAQ
Our Guide to Alex Gibney’s film ‘Going Clear,’ and our pages about its principal figures…
Jason Beghe | Tom DeVocht | Sara Goldberg | Paul Haggis | Mark “Marty” Rathbun | Mike Rinder | Spanky Taylor | Hana Whitfield
