Danny Masterson made a low-key figure when he stepped out in Glendale, California on Monday, a day before it was revealed that he will face a March retrial on three counts of rape.
The That ’70s Show star, 46, looked thoughtful as he strolled down a street wearing a baseball cap and bushy beard amid his legal troubles.
Masterson, 46, played Steven Hyde on That ’70s Show. He is accused of raping three women, including a former girlfriend, at his Hollywood Hills home between 2001 and 2003.
A judge declared a mistrial when jurors were “hopelessly deadlocked” in the first trial last year.
Sighting: Danny Masterson cut a low-key figure as he stepped out in Glendale, California on Monday, a day before it was revealed he will face a new trial on three counts of rape in March.
The Church of Scientology, of which Masterson is a member, is accused of advising victims not to go public. He is being sued in a separate case in civil court.
In November, a jury of six men and six women in Los Angeles told Judge Charlaine Olmedo that they could not reach a decision after four days of arguments.
Masterson has pleaded not guilty to all three charges. Jurors said they were “not even close” to reaching a unanimous decision on the charges.
Ongoing: The That ’70s Show star, 46, looked thoughtful as he strolled down a street wearing a baseball cap and bushy beard amid his legal troubles
Walking: The actor was seen with his mother while walking down the street
Assistant District Attorney Reinhold Mueller announced: ‘Our office has decided to retry this case.
“Not giving these victims another chance with a jury that can sit there and consider all the evidence – win, lose or tie – would be an injustice.”
Judge Charlaine Olmedo rejected a defense request to dismiss the case, after defense attorney Philip Cohen argued it was “unlikely” any jury would reach a unanimous verdict.
He said: ‘It’s not that things were ignored that Mr Mueller thought were important or significant.
‘It is that things were discussed and it was not believed that they were important for the decision-making of some of the members of the jury.’
But Judge Olmdeo ruled that Cohen’s arguments were “speculative and not supported by the facts.”
Low key: The actor wore a baseball cap while walking down the street
She added: ‘It seems like there are many other witnesses that people could choose to call or different arguments that people could choose to make.
‘A different result in a new trial is at least a possibility.’
The court has ordered that a new trial date be set for March 27.
In the mistrial, on the charge of forcible rape of Jane Doe 1, two jurors believed Masterson guilty and 10 voted for his acquittal.
On count two, the forcible rape of Jane Doe 2, the vote was four for guilty and eight for acquittal.
Masterson leaving the courthouse with his wife Bijou Phillips after the verdict in November of last year.
Danny Masterson played prankster Steven Hyde, fourth from left, on That ’70s Show from 1998 to 2006.
A judge declared a mistrial in November after jurors said they were hopelessly deadlocked in the trial of That ’70s Show actor Danny Masterson, who is accused of three rapes.
On the third count, the forcible rape of Jane Doe 3, the vote was five for guilty and seven for acquittal.
His accusers are all former Scientologists and are also suing him and the Church of Scientology in civil court, alleging that they have been harassed and intimidated since they reported him to the police.
The three women who accused Masterson of rape testified that the reason they took so long to report him was fear of retaliation from the Church of Scientology.
They said church officials warned them not to use the word rape and that turning a fellow Scientologist over to the police was considered a “serious crime.”
They said that if they disobeyed that doctrine, they could be declared ‘repressive persons’, expelled by the church, and left alone, isolated from family and friends.
All three rapes are alleged to have occurred at Masterson’s home in the Hollywood Hills.
The original Fox sitcom ran for eight seasons, between 1998 and 2006, and was nominated for 16 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning just one for costume design in 1999.
The only non-returning cast member is Danny Masterson, who was accused of raping three women between 2001 and 2003 during the same time he played troubled biracial teen Steven Hyde on the series.
The juries in the Scientologist’s rape trial were deadlocked and the judge declared a mistrial on November 30, so a new test will start again next March.
Judge Charlaine Olmedo denied a request to dismiss the case against Masterson, whose defense attorney argued it was “unlikely” any jury would reach a unanimous verdict.