‘You are pathetic, disturbed and completely violent’: Danny Masterson unmoved by sentencing victim statements
Actor Danny Masterson remained unmoved as his two rape victims gave powerful impact statements to a judge before the That ‘70s Show star was sentenced to 30 years in prison for the attacks. “When you raped me, you stole from me,” said one woman who Masterson, 47, was convicted of raping in 2003. “That’s what rape is, a theft of the spirit.” “You are pathetic, disturbed and completely violent,” she added. “The world is better off with you in prison.” The other victim told Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine Olmedo that the actor “has not shown an ounce of remorse for the pain he caused.” “I knew he belonged behind bars for the safety of all the women he came into contact with. I am so sorry, and I’m so upset. I wish I’d reported him sooner to the police,” she told the court. Masterson, who has been in custody since May, showed no visible reaction to the statements as he sat in court, reported The Associated Press. Masterson was found guilty by a jury of two counts of rape on 31 May after seven days of deliberations. The court was told that both attacks took place at Masterson’s home in the Hollywood area of the city in 2003 when he was a member of the cast of the hit Fox sitcom. Masterson did not testify, and his defence team called no witnesses, arguing that the acts were consensual. The jury could not reach a unanimous verdict on a third count, an allegation that Masterson had raped a longtime girlfriend. A mistrial was declared in Masterson’s first trial in December 2022 after a jury failed to reach verdicts on three counts of forcible rape. “Mr Masterson, I know that you’re sitting here steadfast in your claims of innocence, and thus no doubt feeling victimized by a justice system that has failed you,” Judge Olmedo told Masterson before handing down the sentence. “But Mr Masterson, you are not the victim here. Your actions 20 years ago took away another person’s voice, and choice. One way or another you will have to come to terms with your prior actions, and their consequences.” The Associated Press contributed to this report. Read More ‘That ’70s Show’ actor Danny Masterson sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for rapes Danny Masterson sentencing - live: ‘That 70s Show’ actor given 30 years to life in prison for raping two women Danny Masterson’s wife breaks down at rape sentencing: Who is Bijou Phillips?
2023-09-08 03:26
'That 70's Show' actor Masterson sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for rapes
By Rollo Ross LOS ANGELES "That '70s Show" actor Danny Masterson was sentenced on Thursday to 30 years
2023-09-08 03:22
US presses Mexico to devote sufficient resources against fentanyl- official
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Elon Musk thwarted Ukrainian drone attack on Russian ships, book claims
Elon Musk ordered SpaceX engineers to cut off Ukrainian access to Starlink satellites near the Crimean coast to prevent a surprise drone attack on Russian warships, a new biography claims. The drones packed with explosives “lost connectivity and washed ashore harmlessly” during the thwarted attack some time last year, Walter Isaacson writes in his upcoming book Elon Musk, according to an excerpt obtained by CNN. Mr Musk told the author that he feared a strike on occupied Crimea would amount to a “mini-Pearl Harbour” and lead to a Russian nuclear retaliation, Mr Isaacson writes. The decision led Ukrainian officials to beg the world’s richest person to reinstate the satellites. The account highlights how Mr Musk unwittingly found himself thrust into the frontlines of the the 18-month-old conflict. “How am I in this war?” Mr Musk reportedly asked the writer, who has previously published biographies of Steve Jobs and Henry Kissinger. “Starlink was not meant to be involved in wars. It was so people can watch Netflix and chill and get online for school and do good peaceful things, not drone strikes.” The world’s richest man found himself thrust into the world of high-stakes diplomacy, and reportedly spoke to US national security adviser Jake Sullivan, joint chiefs chairman Mark Milley and the Russian ambassador to the US. Ukraine’s former deputy prime minister Mykhailo Fedorov also contacted Mr Musk to beg him to switch the satellites back on, according to the book. The SpaceX CEO replied that the drone attack was “going too far and inviting strategic defeat,” and declined to restore access. SpaceX has donated more than 20,000 Starlink terminals to Ukraine after Russia destroyed much of the country’s infrastructure in the beginning of the war in February 2022. Last October, Mr Musk wrote to the Pentagon to say that it could no longer afford to continue funding the service, which he estimated had cost the company hundreds of millions of dollars, CNN revealed at the time. After the story broke, Mr Musk wrote on Twitter, now known as X: “The hell with it … we’ll just keep funding Ukraine govt for free.” According to Mr Isaacson, US Defense officials had been about to hand over a $145m check before his reversal. “Elon succumbed to the bulls*** on Twitter and to the haters at the Pentagon who leaked the story,” SpaceX’s president Gwynne Shotwell reportedly told Mr Isaacson. SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment by The Independent. In a promotional blurb, publishers Simon & Schuster say that Mr Isaacson shadowed Mr Musk for two years to gain an insight into every aspect of the billionaire’s world. The author “attended his meetings, walked his factories with him, and spent hours interviewing him, his family, friends, coworkers, and adversaries”. “The result is the revealing inside story, filled with amazing tales of triumphs and turmoil, that addresses the question: are the demons that drive Musk also what it takes to drive innovation and progress?” * Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson is set to be realeased by Simon & Schuster on 12 September Read More First photo emerges of Elon Musk and his baby twins with Neuralink director How Ukraine’s month-long drone assault has brought the war home for Russians Elon Musk vows to sue ADL for calling him antisemitic after he promoted antisemitic campaign on X The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary
2023-09-08 02:18
US Senate confirms Kugler to fill Fed governor position
(Reuters) -The U.S. Senate on Thursday confirmed World Bank economist Adriana Kugler to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, where
2023-09-08 01:59
Maui beckons tourists, and their dollars, to stave off economic disaster after wildfires
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Canada launches public inquiry into foreign interference
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Mexico on track for first woman president as second female frontrunner joins race
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George Santos: Internal campaign research raised red flags before his election
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2023-09-08 01:26
New federal rule may help boost competition for railroad shipments at companies with few options
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Fact check: Ramaswamy falsely describes his own 2021 article, continuing a recent pattern
For at least the third time in the last two weeks, Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has falsely described something he wrote before he launched his campaign.
2023-09-08 00:56
First offer from General Motors falls short of demands by the United Auto Workers, but it's a start
General Motors made its first wage-and-benefit offer to the United Auto Workers that falls far short of the union’s initial demands
2023-09-08 00:54
