Woman testifies Danny Masterson raped, choked her in 2003
A woman broke down on the witness stand Wednesday while giving graphic testimony about a 2003 night she said she emerged from unconsciousness to find actor Danny Masterson raping her
Woman testifies Danny Masterson raped, choked her in 2003
Show all 2Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A woman broke down on the witness stand Wednesday while giving graphic testimony about a 2003 night when she said she emerged from unconsciousness to find actor Danny Masterson raping her.
She is the first of three women who say Masterson raped them to testify during his Los Angeles trial. She said at one point she grabbed Masterson's hair to try to pull him away, but he shoved a pillow into her face.
“I was smothered,” she said, crying. “I could not breathe.”
She said she later grabbed his throat to try to push him away but he held her down and began choking her.
Asked by the prosecutor what she was thinking at the time, she replied: "That he was going to kill me. That I was going to die.”
By this point she was weeping. After she said “I can't do this," the judge called for a brief break and a court victims' services advocate comforted her at the witness stand.
When she took the stand again, she testified that Masterson pulled a gun from a drawer in his bedside table and ordered her to be quiet when there was a commotion — and voices — at the door.
She said that, throughout the night, she passed in and out of consciousness despite drinking only about half of a fruity vodka drink Masterson had handed her.
The woman, then 27, was the best friend of Masterson's assistant and part of the same social circle of Church of Scientology members.
Masterson, 46, who at the time was a star of the sitcom “That '70s show,” has pleaded not guilty to three counts of rape.
His attorney was set to cross-examine the woman later Wednesday.
A previous defense lawyer for Masterson contended the three women had each reframed consensual sex as rape.
The Associated Press does not name people who say they have been sexually abused unless they come forward publicly.
___
Follow AP Entertainment Writer Andrew Dalton on Twitter: https://twitter.com/andyjamesdalton
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.