Leah Remini, a vocal former member of the Church of Scientology, expressed her satisfaction with the 30-year prison term handed to Danny Masterson on Thursday.
After the “That ’70s Show” star and dedicated Scientologist was sentenced to life in prison for two rapes committed in 2003, Remini took to Twitter to express her relief and appreciation — while calling out Masterson’s suspected collaborators:
“I am relieved that this dangerous rapist will be off the streets and unable to violently assault and rape women with the help of Scientology, a multi-billion-dollar criminal organization with tax-exempt status,” stated the actress, who was “sitting in court today with the women who survived Danny Masterson’s predation” — in a lengthy statement.
“Hearing the survivors read their victim impact statements aloud in court while the man who raped them and some of the very Scientologists who terrorized them over two decades were just a few feet away displayed a level of bravery that I am in awe of,” Remini continued.
“These women not only faced the living hell of being raped, having their rapes covered up by the very organization that promised to protect them, but they have also faced ruthless and criminal harassment by Scientology and its agents since they came forward to law enforcement.”
The 53-year-old “King of Queens” star feels Masterson was able to dodge “accountability for his crimes” for so long because of “Scientology, its operatives, and its criminal leader, David Miscavige.”
She claimed that the organization “managed to cover up Danny’s crimes with the help of its intelligence agency, the Office of Special Affairs, top ‘church’ officials like Kirsten Caetano Pedersen and Julian Swartz, its network of media-hungry unethical attorneys, private investigators, agents, and civilian Scientologists,” indicating they collaborated to cover up the disgraced actor’s “crimes of sexual violence.”
My statement on the sentencing of Scientologist Danny Masterson:
"Sitting in court today with the women who survived Danny Masterson's predation was a surreal experience. Over the past seven decades, former Scientologists have sadly become used to Scientology using its…
— Leah Remini (@LeahRemini) September 7, 2023
Remini, who was introduced into Scientology by her mother when she was 8-years-old, quit the group in 2013 and has since dedicated her life to exposing its alleged atrocities.
She proceeded to “remind the public that in Scientology if you report another Scientologist to law enforcement, you are committing a high crime,” one which is purportedly met with “devastating” repercussions.
“You will lose everything you’ve ever known, from your family to your friends to your job,” she indicated, applauding Masterson’s survivors for striving “tirelessly for justice.”
“Their tenacity, strength, and courage have given hope to all victims of Scientology that justice is possible,” added Remini. “For that, we will forever be grateful.”
She wrapped up her message by thanking “the LAPD detectives, the LA District Attorney’s office, Judge Olmedo, and the jury” for their “fair and impartial approach to this case and trial.”
Remini recently aired a new podcast episode with @MikeRinder, where they discussed in detail the dark side of the Church of Scientology:
WE ARE BACK!
So many of you have been asking @MikeRinder and me when we're going to return with a new episode of our podcast.
We're so excited to have a new episode out today!
In this episode, we discuss a cache of confidential Scientology intelligence documents which reveal… pic.twitter.com/S0WysRXyf9
— Leah Remini (@LeahRemini) September 7, 2023
When approached for comment on Remini’s charges, Church of Scientology representatives released the same statement they did after Masterson’s conviction in May.
“The prosecution’s introduction of religion into this trial was an unprecedented violation of the First Amendment and affects the due process rights of every American,” read the statement. “The Church was not a party to this case and religion did not belong in this proceeding as Supreme Court precedent has maintained for centuries.”
The statement went on, “The District Attorney unconscionably centered his prosecution on the defendant’s religion and fabrications about the Church to introduce prejudice and inflame bigotry. The DA elicited testimony and descriptions of Scientology beliefs and practices which were uniformly FALSE.”
According to the church, it has “no policy prohibiting or discouraging members from reporting criminal conduct of anyone — Scientologists or not — to law enforcement.” In fact, the organization is said to have a policy that “explicitly demands Scientologists abide by all laws of the land.”
The statement ended with, “There is not a scintilla of evidence supporting the scandalous allegations that the Church harassed the accusers. Every single instance of supposed harassment by the Church is FALSE, and has been debunked.”
Masterson, who was seen for the first time in jail getup at Thursday’s hearing, received the maximum penalty.
During his retrial, the 47-year-old married father of one, was found guilty on two of three counts of rape after the jury failed to concur on the third.
One woman claimed Masterson raped her when she was 23 in the winter of 2001, another claimed he raped her when she was 28 in April 2003, and a third claimed he raped her when she was 23 in the fall and winter of 2003.
One of the women was an ex-girlfriend, and all of the accusers belonged to the Church of Scientology.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-330-0226.
