Sentenced to 30 years to life for two rapes, Danny Masterson is now bunking down in Charles Manson’s last home.
Along with serial rapists, killers and the man who murdered Bill Cosby’s son, the That 70s Show actor is now a resident of California’s Corcoran State Prison. Transferred from DTLA to North Kern State Prison on December 27, the 47-year-old Masterson was moved to the men-only maximum-security prison on January 29, a law enforcement source says.
Masterson is being held in the prison’s highest security level unit, I hear – in no small part for his own protection.
In terms of getting out, state corrections records have Masterson being able to seek parole in 2042.
That date is pretty much in accordance with the 20 years that Judge Charlaine Olmedo back at sentencing in September gave the actor before he could seek to exit confinement. The date is based on Masterson not getting into any trouble behind bars. “Parole eligible dates may also change based on a variety of other reasons, including court orders, changes in law, and routine audits,” notes Masterson’s online file.
One of the largest employers in the region, Corcoran State Prison is currently over capacity with approximately 3,700 inmates – 42 of whom are on death row. There is also a 47-prisoner strong Protective Housing Unit for those requiring “extraordinary protection from other prisoners.” One of those prisoners up until 2013 was Sirhan Sirhan, the assassin of Robert F. Kennedy. However, among the hardened criminals in the much-investigated facility, the most well-known has to be Charles Manson.
The “Helter Skelter” killer was incarcerated at Corcoran from March 1989 to his death at the age of 83 in November 2017.
Masterson was first arrested in 2020 over the then alleged assaults that occurred between 2001 and 2003. After his arrest, and during his first mistrial and subsequent second trial, The Ranch actor was out on bail of $3 million. When the guilty verdict was delivered on May 31, the potential “flight risk,” as Judge Olmedo said at the time, was led out of court and into the nearby Twin Towers LA County jail by sheriff’s deputies. Masterson was sentenced in September.
Last week, Judger Olmedo refused Masterson’s lawyers request that their client be freed on bail during his appeal.
“If defendant’s conviction and sentence are upheld on appeal, he will likely remain in custody for decades and perhaps the rest of his life,” wrote the judge on January 24. “In light of the fact that defendant has no wife to go home to, defendant now has every incentive to flee and little reason to return to state prison to serve out the remainder of his lengthy sentence should his appeal be unsuccessful,” Judge Olmedo noted, with reference to the ongoing divorce proceedings between Masterson and Bijou Phillips.
Masterson’s attorneys do still plan to file an appeal, I’m told.
The criminal case is not the only legal challenge Masterson faces.
Masterson, along with the Church of Scientology is a co-defendant in a civil harassment case by a number of the Jane Does from the criminal trial and members of their families. Having failed to get the Supreme Court to step in to stop the case, the David Miscavige-led church is up against potential RICO claims and Masterson is being linked to more rape claims in the civil matter. That is set to go to trial on September 22, 2025.
