Danny Masterson’s rape retrial is now in progress, and early reports indicated that it wouldn’t differ from the first round of legal proceedings, which ended in a mistrial due to a hung jury. However, the case already differs from the original in one major way, as it was attended by Leah Remini. The actress and noted Scientology critic was in the courtroom on Monday, after the defense attempted to keep her out. As a result, speculation arose regarding whether she might end up taking the stand. Remini has since addressed her appearance at the trial and the rumors that she’ll serve as a witness.
Leah Remini left the Church of Scientology in 2013 after having been a member since she was a child. Since then, she’s sought to advocate for those who’ve allegedly been harmed by the organization and its practices. That intrinsic drive seems to be what motivated her to sit in on the high-profile court case. The actress articulated her thoughts in a thread that was posted to Twitter:
Today I attended the opening arguments in the rape trial of celebrity Scientologist Danny Masterson. I attended to show my support for the women who were not only brutally raped by Danny but then subjected to years of harassment by Scientology.
The That ‘70s Show actor has been accused of sexual assault by three Jane Does, who are all former Scientologists and say that the purported incidents took place between 2001 and 2003. The TV veteran was charged with three counts of rape and could serve 45 years to life in prison if the jury finds him guilty. It was reported that this retrial would mostly consist of the same witnesses, though the King of Queens alum has since been referred to as a “percipient witness to certain conversations” by the defense.
Well aware of the buzz surrounding her, Leah Remini – who had a strong reaction after Danny Masterson was charged in 2020 – later addressed his team’s attempts to exclude her. She then proceeded to clarify her witness list status (as of right now). The outspoken Remini also shared some thoughts on the Church of Scientology’s leader and his influence:
Before opening arguments began, Danny's Scientology-controlled lawyers tried to get the judge to throw me out of the courtroom based on the false premise that they had planned to call me as a witness in the trial. … First, I am not on the witness list for the prosecution. Second, this shows how threatened Scientology is by the truth. … This is what happens when David Miscavige directs your defense; you waste the court's time with embarrassing, petty attempts to get someone who is supporting survivors of sexual violence thrown out.
The 52-year-old actress closed out her thread by stating that David Miscavige “will never dictate where I'm allowed to be and what I'm allowed to say.” This is far from the first time that Leah Remini has been critical of the religious leader. In fact, she was particularly vocal years ago following the alleged disappearance of his wife, Shelly. Mrs. Miscavige hasn’t been seen in public since 2007 and, in 2013, Remini filed a missing person’s report for her. The star also tackled the topic in her widely watched A&E show Scientology and the Aftermath. The case was eventually closed in 2018, with several detectives reporting that they’d spoken with Shelly in person.
Leah Remini’s presence at the retrial is another example of how Scientology has factored into Danny Masterson’s case. Judge Charlaine Olmedo was displeased with the opening statements of the first trial partially because of that influence. She declared that the case would not “be inundated with” the religion. Whether that notion proves to be true this time around remains to be seen but, at the very least, it seems she won’t hear Scientology-related testimony from Remini.
