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Danny Masterson, star of That ’70s Show, has been sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for the rapes of two women two decades ago. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine Olmedo handed down the sentence to the 47-year-old actor after ruling on a defence motion for a new trial that she rejected, and having heard impact statements from the victims. A jury of seven women and five men found Masterson guilty of two counts on 31 May after seven days of deliberations. Both attacks took place in Masterson’s Hollywood Hills home in 2003, when he was at the height of his fame on the Fox network sitcom. The jury could not reach a unanimous verdict on a third count, an allegation that Masterson also raped a longtime girlfriend. The verdict came in a second trial after a jury failed to reach verdicts on three counts of forcible rape in December 2022 and a mistrial was declared. Prosecutors alleged that Masterson used his prominence in the Church of Scientology — where all three women were also members at the time — to avoid consequences for decades after the attacks. Read More ‘You’ll be caught:’ Resurfaced Danny Masterson chat show clip takes on chilling light after rape sentencing Leah Remini hits out at Church of Scientology following Danny Masterson rape sentencing That ’70s Show actor Danny Masterson sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for rapes

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It was the URL heard around the world. On Monday, a document seemingly announcing 13 counts against Donald Trump was briefly published online on a Fulton County web system – before being deleted just as quickly – kicking off rampant speculation about the looming indictment and instantly fuelling claims of foul play from the former president. The initial charge sheet seemed to show an extensive list of criminal charges against Mr Trump stemming from the long-running Georgia investigation into his attempts to overturn the state’s 2020 election results, according to Reuters, which first reported the document. It was published hours before the grand jury eventually voted to indict the former president and a group of his closest allies for running a criminal enterprise to overturn the 2020 election in the state and keep Mr Trump in power. The document, which can still be viewed on the Reuters website, was quickly taken down. Hours later, when the indictment was handed down, it appeared under a different case code. It also included Mr Trump’s 18 co-defendants – something the original document did not. But there were some similarities between the initial posting and the final charge sheet, with both including the exact same 13 charges against the former president. In a statement to The Independent on Tuesday, the Fulton County clerk’s office explained in greater detail what prompted the confusion. It said Ché Alexander, Fulton County Clerk of Superior and Magistrate Courts, used an online document system to conduct a “trial run” of posting a large indictment to test for potential issues. “Unfortunately, the sample working document led to the docketing of what appeared to be an indictment, but which was, in fact, only a fictitious docket sheet,” they explained. “Because the media has access to documents before they are published, and while it may have appeared that something official had occurred because the document bore a case number and filing date, it did not include a signed ‘true’ or ‘no’ bill nor an official stamp with Clerk Alexander’s name, thereby making the document unofficial and a test sample only.” The office, once it was aware of the mixup, said it “immediately removed the document and issued correspondence notifying the media that a fictitious document was in circulation and that no indictment had been returned by the Grand Jury,” the statement added. However, this explanation was only available after the fact. Throughout Monday, little was known about what prompted the initial document to appear then disappear. Officials only said it was “fictitious.” The lack of information was quickly exploited by Mr Trump. In an email to his supporters asking for donations to his campaign, the former president claimed the document was another sign of the “Witch Hunt” against him and asked his supporters for more money. “This is an absolute DISGRACE. These rabid left-wing prosecutors don’t care about uncovering the truth. They don’t care about administering justice or upholding the rule of law,” he wrote to his donors in an email with the subject line “LEAKED CHARGES AGAINST ME.” “The Grand Jury testimony has not even FINISHED – but it’s clear the District Attorney has already decided how this case will end.” Online commentators also began speculating that the document was a hack or maybe a leak; after all, the unthinkable and unexpected already happened once in recent months, with the 2022 leak of a draft opinion of the Supreme Court’s eventual decision overturning Roe v Wade. Republican lawmakers meanwhile flew into a rage. "This is OUTRAGEOUS government conduct and is a very legitimate basis to deem the entire Grand Jury process tainted & corrupted,” Florida Representative Matt Gaetz wrote on social media. “MOTION TO DISMISS!!!" The overarching political narratives – judgment day for Mr Trump, or a political prosecution gone too far – had for a time outrun the verifiable facts on the ground. All the while, the actual grand jury process, the body that eventually recommended Mr Trump’s fourth major criminal indictment of the year, continued throughout Monday, extending into after-hours testimony from Georgia officials. Outside, police continued with a stepped-up security posture including K-9 dogs. Media organisations surrounded the court complex, with lines of tents and cameras that heightened the atmosphere of anticipation. When the indictment was unsealed it emerged that there were 13 felony charges against Mr Trump, including RICO, conspiracy to commit forgery, filing false documents, Solicitation of Violation of Oath by Public Officer and more. In addition, 18 Trump associates have also been indicted, including former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani. The document drama was the latest bizarre twist in a high-profile investigation that began shortly after an infamous 2021 phone call, in which Mr Trump was recorded giving explicit requests for top state officials to “find” him enough votes to reverse Joe Biden’s victory in Georgia. Most recently, Mr Trump has falsely claimed Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis had an affair with a rapper who was the target of a racketeering probe by her office. Read More Trump indictment live: Trump and 18 allies ordered to surrender on RICO charges for Georgia election plot What is Georgia’s RICO law? Why a law created to prosecute the Mafia is being leveled against Trump All the bombshell charges against Trump and his allies in Georgia RICO case How did a Trump charge sheet get published hours before grand jury vote? Truth Social are doxxing grand jurors who indicted Trump in Georgia Trump claims mystery press conference report clears him of Georgia election charges

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Residents from a small Icelandic town under threat from volcanic eruption have described ‘apocalyptic’ existence as they fear for their future. Last Friday, thousands of Grindavik residents were ordered to leave as the town was rocked by hundreds of earthquakes. The small fishing town is 34 miles from Reykjavík and is home to the famous tourist attraction the Blue Lagoon. Many have been unable to return to the ‘danger zone’ to collect their belongings, as earthquakes continue to strike the town. Grindavik resident Andrea Ævarsdóttir, 46, told The Independent: “Everything just seems so unreal, I feel like I’m in a dystopian movie. I’m just waiting to wake up from this nightmare.” The mother was getting ready to go into Reykjavík to celebrate her son Björgvin Hrafnar’s 16th birthday when their house started to shake on Friday. “Some of them [the earthquakes] were like a big truck had driven past your house, the bigger ones were like the same truck had hit your house,” she said. “Everything was shaking so bad, the floors were going up and down.” The family planned on staying overnight at her mother’s home, but they were alerted en route that they were going to be evacuated so only had their overnight bags and had left their cats behind. Ms Ævarsdóttir made the difficult call to return home to get her cats and medication but was stopped at a checkpoint on the main road Grindavikurvegur. Fortunately, the mother was granted special permission to return to collect her tablets and three pets before heading back. Like other Grindavik residents, Ms Ævarsdóttir was allowed to return home on Monday to collect her belongings but had to obey a 10-minute time limit. She is now living with her 16 and 14-year-old sons in her mother’s cramped two-bedroom apartment. Describing the surreality and sadness of leaving her home, she said: “I was crying non-stop when we got to Grindavik, we were allowed to drive into town. “We had ten minutes, you don’t have the mental capacity to think, I was in panic mode, I just grabbed what I could see. “I grabbed all of the clothes I could think of but I left one of the packed suitcases behind.” The children do not yet have to return to school as they recover from the shock, but it remains unclear where they will go, explained the mother. The distraught mother works as the director of a local and public school library and explained the families ‘entire existence is in Grindavik’. Her home of eight and a half years is still standing but some have fallen to the ground due to the strong quakes. “It was really hard to see the state of some of the houses and streets. My house seemed fine but this area is really unstable.” Now the mother has to decide whether she wants to eventually move back to the town, if it isn’t destroyed by the volcanic eruption. She says residents have accustomed to living with earthquakes, but living on an active volcano fissure is a different story. “I love living in Grindavik, it’s a really nice close-knit town but now comes the fear if we get to move back, do we want to move back?” she said. “This area is really unstable. Do we want to experience evacuation again?” Siggeir Ævarsson, 38, is another Grindavik resident who does not know if he will be able to return to his family home. The teacher had planned to meet his brother and sister-in-law but after the earthquakes stuck on Friday his brother-in-law urged them to come sooner. “I’ve seen a lot Earthquakes but this is something I’ve never felt before. “The sources were 2km away from our house. Things were falling down from shelves, I was standing in the kitchen I thought, can I even put pans on the stove.” Alongside his wife and youngest daughter,Þorgeir Úlfar,14, they grabbed their two cats and left. The 38-year-old says he and his wife, Soffía Sveinsdóttir, 39, have been fortunate as his sister-in-law has a spacious house with spare rooms. Mr Ævarsson was allowed to return on Sunday and was able to fill two cars with their items. “It was like going into an apocalyptic movie. The town was empty and lifeless. There were cracks everywhere. “It was very weird to walk into the house, it looked exactly the same the lights were still on. “Other houses are cracking in two, my house was fine, but a few metres up the road they are ruined.” As a born-and-bred Grindavikian, the father–of-two is trying to remain positive and “not think about lava flowing through his home”. “I’m trying to think of this as extension of a holiday, I’m watching movies, drinking beer.” Read More Iceland residents describe ‘apocalyptic’ scenes as they flee volcano threat Iceland eruption likely scientists warn as ‘biggest bulldozer’ deployed - live Biggest volcanic eruptions in the last 10 years as Iceland town faces devastation Is it safe to travel to Iceland? Your rights if you have a holiday booked Huge cracks appear on roads in Iceland’s volcano-threatened town Iceland earthquake: Town could be obliterated if volcanic eruption strikes

Caleb Rogers made a desperate attempt to steal another $79,000 at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in February last year