The District Attorney's Office said in a
statement that it had declined to file sexual assault charges
against Masterson in two other cases because of insufficient
evidence and because of the statute of limitations.
Masterson, 44, got his break-out role in the 1998-2006
television comedy series "That 70s Show," in which he played a
rebel adolescent. He could not immediately be reached for
comment on the charges.
In a statement issued to Variety, Tom Mesereau, Masterson's
attorney, vowed to fight the charges.
"Mr. Masterson is innocent, and we're confident that he will be
exonerated when all the evidence finally comes to light and
witnesses have the opportunity to testify," Mesereau said in the
statement. "The people who know Mr. Masterson know his character
and know the allegations to be false."
The three rape charges together carry a maximum prison sentence
of 45 years to life in prison if Masterson is convicted, the
District Attorney's office said.
All of the alleged rapes took place at Masterson's Hollywood
Hills home, the statement said. They involve the alleged rape of
a 23-year-old woman between January and December 2001, a
28-year-old woman in April 2003, and a 23-year old woman between
October and December 2003. The charges did not name the women.
Masterson, who has been married to actress Bijou Phillips since
2011, was written out of the Netflix comedy series "The Ranch"
in December 2017 when a police investigation on the allegations
against him first came to light.
Dozens of actors, politicians, businessmen and musicians have
lost their jobs since 2017 when sexual assault allegations
against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein fueled the #MeToo
movement. Weinstein was convicted of rape and sexual assault in
February and sentenced to 23 years behind bars.
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Howard Goller)
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