Danny Masterson Seeks to Overturn Rape Conviction as He Blames His Lawyer for Poor Defense

Danny Masterson is blaming his lawyer for a poor defense at his 2023 rape trial, and thus is seeking to have his conviction overturned.

The disgraced That '70s Show actor, 49, is claiming his trial attorney, Philip Cohen, failed to call any witnesses to the stand and didn't defend him against prosecutors' declarations about Scientology.

According to a petition for habeas corpus filed on Monday, November 17, Masterson “implored (Cohen) to present at least a minimal modicum of defense evidence, but counsel refused."

Masterson was sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2023 after being convicted of raping two women in the early 2000s.

Scientology came up throughout his trial as prosecutors asserted that the victims were threatened if they went to the police about Masterson, who has been a member of the controversial church since childhood.

Prosecutors called ex-Scientologist Claire Headley to testify that the church would only let you go to authorities about an incident if special permission was granted.

According to the habeas petition, lawyers for the church wanted Masterson's defense to have Hugh Whitt, another longtime Scientologist, appear at trial to argue against that claim. They did not call him, however.

Cohen instead opted to deemphasize Masterson's connection to the church and act like his religion was invoked because prosecutors lacked sufficient evidence.

In his closing argument he said, "Why have we heard so much about Scientology?," adding, "Could it be there’s problems otherwise with the government’s case?"

The petition further alleges that Cohen should've spoken to more defense witnesses who might have cast doubt on the credibility of the accusers.

“In sum, the jury saw only the tip of the iceberg of available defense evidence in the form of the complaining witnesses’ inconsistent statements while the wealth of directly exculpatory evidence went unused for no viable tactical reason,” the petition states.

This new petition comes after a separate appeal challenging the judge's ruling was filed last December.

In the 246-page document, Masterson's attorney Cliff Gardner cited various errors as well as biases that "violated" the defamed actor's "rights to confrontation and a fair trial."

In a statement posted on Gardner's website, the respected lawyer said there were multiple "fundamental flaws" in Masterson's conviction and that his trial "was rife with erroneous judicial rulings that skewed the jury’s view of the evidence against him."

Gardner also alleged that "there was a stunning amount of exculpatory evidence" that the jury never saw.