Convicted Actor Blames Lawyer for Weak Defense in Rape Retrial Bid

In November 2025, former "That '70s Show" actor Danny Masterson is making a bid to overturn his 2023 rape conviction. Masterson, who is currently serving a 30-year sentence at the California Men's Colony, has filed a petition for habeas corpus, blaming his trial attorney, Philip Cohen, for putting on a poor defense.

According to the filing, Masterson "implored (Cohen) to present at least a minimal modicum of defense evidence, but counsel refused." The petition argues that Cohen failed to call any witnesses and did not push back on prosecutors' claims about Scientology, which played a prominent role in both of Masterson's trials.

Prosecutors had argued that the women Masterson was convicted of raping were discouraged from reporting a high-profile member of the church, and two of them testified they were threatened with excommunication if they went to the police. However, the defense did not call a key witness, Hugh Whitt, a longtime Scientologist, who could have rebutted the prosecution's claims about the church's policies.

Instead, Cohen's strategy was to downplay Scientology's involvement, a tactic that nearly worked at Masterson's first trial in 2022, where the jury deadlocked on all three rape charges. But at the retrial in 2023, the prosecution presented a more aggressive case, and Masterson was ultimately convicted on two counts.

Masterson's appellate lawyers argue that Cohen failed to adapt his strategy to the changed circumstances, and did not interview many defense witnesses who could have undermined the credibility of the accusers. They believe the jury only heard "the tip of the iceberg" of available defense evidence.

"The jury heard only half the story - the prosecution's side," said Masterson's appellate lawyer, Eric Multhaup. "Danny deserves a new trial where the jury can hear his side as well."