Danny Masterson trial: Judge finds lawyers leaked info to Church of Scientology
Global News
A judge ruled Danny Masterson's ex-lawyers leaked sensitive trial information to the Church of Scientology about the women who accused him of rape.
Two lawyers formerly representing That ’70’s Show actor and convicted rapist Danny Masterson were financially sanctioned by a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge on Wednesday.
Judge Charlaine Olmedo ruled Masterson’s ex-defence lawyers, Tom Mesereau and Sharon Appelbaum, leaked sensitive trial information to the Church of Scientology about the women who accused Masterson of rape.
Masterson, 47, is a practicing Scientologist. Last week, a Los Angeles jury found the actor guilty of rape after nearly two weeks of deliberation.
The three women who accused Masterson of sexually assaulting them have for many years claimed the church has stalked and harassed them since they defected from Scientology.
The confidential discovery material from Masterson’s rape trial was sent to another Church of Scientology lawyer, Vicki Podberesky, and it contained police reports from the victims and their personal information, including home addresses and banking details.
The leak to Podberesky was exposed during Masterson’s retrial last month, when Deputy District Attorney Reinhold Mueller said he received an email from Podberesky — who was not affiliated with the trial — that included an attachment of 570 pages of discovery material. It is unclear if the attachment was sent by accident.
“It’s extremely troubling that all of our redacted discovery we turned over to the defence is now in the hands of Scientology,” Mueller told the judge during Masterson’s retrial.
Podberesky tried to claim prosecutors were soliciting false testimony from victims in order to wrongfully convict Masterson of rape. Judge Olmedo said the allegation was “demonstrably false.”
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