At 2:30 pm, the jury buzzes twice, indicating they have a question.
We happened to be alone in the courtroom with just the bailiff and clerk at the time.
The two of them got up to check it out. A few minutes later when they came back, we asked what was up and the clerk said the jury is requesting to rewatch a video from the case.
It will be shown at 9 in the morning, he said, and they will continue to deliberate in the meantime.
When we asked which video they were requesting, he said he wanted to talk to the attorneys first.
So we're still waiting to hear which segment the jury wants to see again.
Looking through our notes, there were three times that recorded interviews were played for the jury.
On Wednesday afternoon, May 10, with Detective Reyes (now Myape) on the stand, two video segments were played by the prosecution from Jane Doe 3's January 17, 2017 interview in Austin, Texas.
The first was about the hair-pulling November 2001 incident, which is the charged incident in this case. (NOTE: Shawn Holley also played this segment during her cross-examination of Jane Doe 3 on April 27.)
The second segment was Jane Doe 3 talking about the December 2001 unconscious sodomy, which is not charged.
Also, the next morning, on May 11, with Detective Reyes still on the stand, the prosecution played a recording of her January 26, 2017 interview with Jane Doe 1 discussing her April 25, 2003 incident. But this was audio only, even though it was a DVD played on a video player.
We would assume if the jury asked to rewatch a "video," they are talking about one of the two segments from Jane Doe 3's interview in Austin.
There has been some confusion in the past about the November 2001 and December 2001 incidents involving Jane Doe 3, although our own observation was that the prosecution had done a better job this time keeping them distinct.
What makes it complex is that it was the December 2001 unconscious sodomy — when Jane Doe 3 alleges she had lost all memory after one or two glasses of wine at the restaurant La Poubelle and woke up the next afternoon with a bleeding anus and Masterson allegedly admitting to having anal sex with her as she was unconscious — that motivated her to go to the Church of Scientology and seek help. However, this is not the incident that Masterson is charged with.
Years later, talking to Det Reyes and then Deputy DA Reinhold Mueller, Jane Doe 3 described an earlier incident from November 2001 when she didn't want to have sex, Masterson put his full weight down on her, she pulled his hair to get him off, and he hit her in the face. This is the charged incident in the case.
The defense has made much of the fact that when Jane Doe 3 had referred to "the rape" to a rape hotline and the Austin PD, she was referring to the December 2001 uncharged incident, not the charged November 2001 one.
You can see why a jury might need some clarification.
Also, we briefly want to address another question we’ve been seeing people raise on social media today, about the necessary number of convictions to send Masterson to prison.
The DA’s office charged Masterson under California’s “one strike” law, which carries potential life sentences for certain felonies. One of the circumstances that qualifies for this law is “multiple” convictions of “forcible rape.”
Any one of the three incidents in this case on their own is beyond the statute of limitations. But when they are charged under the one-strike law, each count carries a potential penalty of 15 years to life in prison.
Deputy DA Reinhold Mueller explained in a pretrial hearing that when a crime carries a potential life sentence, there is no statute of limitations and he can bring a charge at any time.
But again, in order to qualify for those potential life penalties, it requires “multiple” convictions.
So, the DA filed three counts against Masterson, but they need at least two convictions to send him to prison. If two counts come back guilty, he is facing 30 years to life in prison. If all three come back guilty, he is facing 45 years to life in prison.
And that also means if he is convicted on only one count, it does not qualify for the one strike law, and is barred by the statute of limitations.
OK, we hope that helps you understand the situation. We know it’s complex. But again the simple way to remember it is, if there are two or more guilty verdicts, Masterson goes to prison. Only one, he doesn’t.
At 3:30 pm, the jury buzzes twice again. We’re told they also want to have copies of the transcript of the video that is shown at 9 am.
At 3:41 pm, the jury buzzes once. They have finished deliberating for the day.
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I’m reading a book about Buddhist practices right now. I will not internalize, I will not read anything in to this. They are doing their job conscientiously. Back to other activities, I will leave speculation out of this.
I had forgotten that they need 2 / 3. Great job as always! I am following a little closely because the details the first were so triggering. I decided to be kinder to myself. I appreciate your summaries greatly 🙌