More and more just keeps unfolding in the “That 70s Show” Danny Masterson’s case.
The latest claim is that Masterson tried to silence one of his rape victims by getting her to sign a $400,000 Non-Disclosure Agreement [NDA].
The woman, giving her testimony under the name Jen B., said she was given the choice to sign the NDA or risk being ex-communicated from the Scientology faith she and Danny shared.
Jen B., the first of three testifiers, had described how Danny brutally raped her in 2003 and how she had avoided speaking with her Scientology superiors about it.
However, around a year later she claimed Scientology officials gave her a choice, either sign an NDA about her encounter with Masterson or risk being ex-communicated and labeled as a suppressive.
“My life would be over,” she testified. “My parents would have to disconnect from me. I had a daughter in school. I wouldn’t be able to work with [my parents]. I wouldn’t know where to go. My parents would also be labeled. Their company, the people who worked for them, family and friends and everyone they’ve known since 1972 … You have to choose your fate, and I didn’t know if they would choose me over that.”
The fine print of the agreement wasn’t revealed in the court, but lawyers for Jen B. said Masterson was supposed to pay the entire amount of the settlement within the year.
Meanwhile, Jen B. agreed she would not damage his reputation and affect his future earnings. If she broke the agreement, she was to pay $200,000 per violation.
Jen B. said, “I went to sign the documents at the Beverly Hills office of high-powered celebrity attorney Marty Singer. I was given until 6 p.m. that day to sign the agreement. When they handed me the documents, Singer instructed me to not touch the pages, but to just sign them.”
“I did however, remember seeing the name David Duncan on the document,” Jen B. added. “That was Masterson’s code name.”
The NDA signing came a year after she claimed she was raped. She reported the rape to her Scientology superiors, who she claims encouraged her not to go to the police.
In a letter to Scientology Justice Chief Mike Ellis she told him how Masterson had raped her and that she planned to report the incident to police.
His reply was shown to the court and Jen B. summarized, saying, “He didn’t give me permission to go to law enforcement. Instead he chose to point to the policy that I cannot go to the police.”
However, in 2004, around a year after the incident, Jen B. did report it to the Los Angeles Police Department [LAPD].
When the LAPD then contacted high-ranking Church members about the incident, she says they became irate, with one telling her: “Yeah, you are f***ed. You have no idea how f***ed you are,’” she claimed. Soon after she was handed the NDA to sign.
Asked what she was afraid about, she said, “I broke that NDA about 50 times. I’m supposed to just tell you ‘Mr. Duncan’ and I had a disagreement and we resolved it.”
The Scientology church has previously disputed Jen B.’s claims, saying it has no policy prohibiting or discouraging members from reporting criminal conduct of Scientologists or of anyone to law enforcement. Church policy explicitly demands Scientologists abide by all laws of the land, including the reporting of crimes.
Masterson’s defense attorney, Philip Cohen, is set to cross-examine Jen B. on the stand on Thursday. In opening statements about the case he had questioned the motive and character of the alleged victims, and how the details of their stories had changed over the years.
Cohen said despite repeated warnings from investigators, the three accusers had spoken with one another and already “contaminated” the case.
Masterson has pleaded not guilty to all charges. He faces a prison sentence of 45 years to life if convicted. The trial continues.
