The rape trial of “That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson is being rebooted for April 17, when selection of a fresh jury – and the likely introduction of new witnesses – is set to begin.
The Superior Court of California announced the new date Wednesday. Masterson’s more than six-week trial late last year ended with a hung jury, and prosecutors immediately vowed to re-try the case, setting a March 27 date that has since passed.
But the April date was expected to stick, as the court also published instructions for media coverage at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in downtown Los Angeles. Once again, cameras were prohibited from the courtroom and lobbies.
Prosecutors are moving forward with a re-trial very much despite the result of the original jury’s vote, which leaned heavily toward acquittal in late November. The judge declared a mistrial after asking the jury – deadlocked for days – to reveal their votes on three counts: For count one, it was two guilty and 10 not guilty; for count two, four guilty and eight not guilty; and for count three, five guilty and seven not guilty.
To get a conviction, a jury must find Masterson guilty on two counts minimum – California’s statute of limitations does not allow the prosecution of individual sexual assault charges as old as these.
Over several weeks of testimony that began in mid-October, three different women told jurors that Masterson raped them at his Los Angeles home in separate – but chillingly similar – incidents between 2001 and 2003. A fourth Jane Doe had also testified as a support witness, but her allegations were not among the charges.
Masterson faced a maximum sentence of 45 years to life in prison. He remains free on the same $3.3 million bail set at his arraignment.
Kelly Hartog contributed to this report.