MIAMI, FLORIDA: In the aftermath of Danny Masterson's sentencing to 30 years to life in prison for the rape of two women, public attention shifted to the letters written on his behalf, appealing for leniency, which were made public.
Some of these letters were from some of his former 'That '70s Show' cast members, including Ashton Kutcher, Mila Kunis, Debra Jo Rupp and Kurtwood Smith.
However, what truly stunned Masterson's ex-stepfather Joe Reaiche in Florida were the letters composed by Masterson's younger siblings, Jordan and Alanna.
Scientology and the Reaiche-Masterson connection
Jordan, known for his role in 'Last Man Standing,' and Alanna, recognized for her part in 'The Walking Dead,' share a complex family background with Masterson.
They were born as Jordan and Alanna Reaiche, being half-siblings to Masterson, and they all share the same mother, Carol.
Still, Jordan and Alanna have a different biological father, Reaiche, a Lebanese-Australian former professional rugby league player and Carol's second husband.
Notably, they were raised within the Scientology community, a belief system they continue to uphold.
In their letters to the court, both Jordan and Alanna portrayed Masterson as a figure who stepped in as a father when their biological father, Reaiche, seemingly abandoned them at a very young age.
These letters were submitted to the court after Masterson was convicted on May 31 for two counts of rape.
While they acknowledged the severity of the penalties Masterson was facing, these letters attempted to depict him as a committed anti-drug advocate—a perspective consistent with Masterson's lifelong association with Scientology.
However, this portrayal contrasts sharply with the fact that Masterson was convicted of using drugs to incapacitate women before violently raping them, a stark contradiction to his supposed anti-drug stance.
Joe Reaiche challenges claims
According to Reaiche, Jordan and Alanna's letters create a distorted image of him as an absent father. “My son and daughter have very short memories about their dad,” Reaiche told The Daily Beast.
He asserted that the excommunication by Scientology ("declaring him a suppressive person") didn't occur until 2005, a decade after his divorce from Carol.
“Carol filed for divorce in 1995 in Los Angeles. Jordan was born in 1986. He was 9, not 6. There’s the first incorrect thing,” Reaiche said.
During that time, he claimed he had remained actively involved in his children's lives, including Danny and Christopher, even providing them with financial support.
Reaiche disputed the claim that he abandoned his children, highlighting that he was present and supportive during those crucial years.
“They make it sound like I walked out and abandoned them, and that Danny was the hero. They were actually making money, and I was giving them money. Carol was their manager,” he told the outlet.
In 1998, three years after the divorce, Masterson achieved fame with his role in 'That '70s Show' and purchased a house in Hollyridge.
Reaiche played a role in assisting Masterson in securing a mortgage for this house, where the reported rapes occurred between 2001 and 2003.
Reaiche estimates that he spent approximately $300,000 on Jordan and Alanna between the divorce and his excommunication by Scientology in 2005.
“I paid for their summer school at that expensive Scientology school in Oregon, Delphi. That was $5,000 each. And I took them everywhere. I slept on couches so the kids would be fine,” he said.
Family rift and fallout
Jordan was 19 not six, when Reaiche was banished by Scientology, resulting in the severing of ties with his children.
Reaiche recalled that he had a substantial presence in his son's life in 2004 when he was 18, even receiving compliments from Masterson for his role in helping Jordan during a challenging time.
“Jordan seems to forget that in 2004, he was getting audited at the Celebrity Centre and it was going badly. Carol asked me to do an ethics cycle on my son. So I did my thing, I straightened him out, and he did fantastic," he said.
He added, "So I was in his life in 2004, when he was 18. Danny even complimented me on it. I went to Christmas dinner with them at the house in Glendale that year, in 2004. Chris’ girlfriend, Laura Prepon, was there. I had dinner with them,” he said.
However, in 2005, Scientology expelled Reaiche after conducting a "committee of evidence."
When Reaiche attempted to contact his children, he discovered that they had been warned of his status as a "suppressive person" and refused to take his calls. Since then, he has not had any communication with them.
While Jordan, Alanna and most of Masterson's family continue to support him throughout his legal battles, Scientology itself has remained silent on the matter, refraining from addressing Masterson's convictions.
Instead, the church has criticized Judge Olmedo for allowing testimony about Scientology during the trials.
Specifically, the Jane Doe victims, who were Scientologists at the time of the rapes, assert that they were raised with the understanding that Scientologists should not report each other to law enforcement.
Scientology has vehemently denied this claim, but evidence in the form of a Scientology textbook outlining this policy was introduced during the trial.
Scientology's PR strategy
Reaiche believes that Scientology will continue to stand by the Masterson family despite the convictions, primarily to safeguard their public image.
“They’re all about protecting their public relations. If they turn on Danny and they turn on the family now you’ve got Leah Remini times five," he previously told the Daily Beast.
He expressed his shock at how Jordan and Alanna, in their letters to the court, portrayed him as having abandoned them in 1992, three years before the divorce.
He said, “If they had said our parents divorced when we were 9 and 7, that would be one thing. But they say I left like I abandoned them. It’s b******t. They perjure themselves.”
Reaiche is now contemplating legal action to clear his name, maintaining that he was a dedicated and supportive father throughout their upbringing.
“I’m going to have to sue my children, unfortunately. That’s where this is going. It’s the only way I can clear my name," he said.
