Court Digest

California
Danny Masterson sent to state prison to serve sentence for rape convictions, mug shot released
DELANO, Calif. (AP) — “That ‘70s Show” actor Danny Masterson has been sent to a California state prison to serve his sentence for two rape convictions.

Authorities said Wednesday that the 47-year-old Masterson has been admitted to North Kern State Prison, and they released his first prison mug shot. The photo shows him wearing orange prison attire, with long hair and a beard.

In June, Masterson was convicted of raping two women in his Los Angeles home in 2003. In September, a judge sentenced him to 30 years to life in prison. His wife, actor Bijou Phillips, filed for divorce in the weeks that followed after a marriage of nearly 12 years.

He had been held in Los Angeles County jail in the months since while post-sentencing hearings were held and issues resolved, including the turnover of all the guns Masterson owned, some of which had to be located.

It will be more than 25 years before Masterson will be eligible for parole.

Masterson’s lawyers said they plan to appeal the conviction.

Maine
Man awaiting trial for quadruple homicide drops insanity plea
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A man charged with killing his parents and two of their friends days after being released from prison in Maine no longer intends to use an insanity defense.

Through his lawyer, Joseph Eaton withdrew a plea of “not criminally responsible” because of mental illness but maintained a plea of not guilty in a court filing earlier this month in Sagadahoc County.

His attorney didn’t elaborate on the decision in the Dec. 8 document but noted that it means a forensic report on criminal responsibility will remain impounded. The attorney’s office was closed Wednesday and he didn’t return an email.

Law enforcement officials say Eaton confessed to the killings at a property in rural Bowdoin and to wounding three people while shooting at vehicles on busy Interstate 295 in Yarmouth.

Killed in the shootings were Eaton’s parents, Cynthia Eaton, 62, and David Eaton, 66, along with their longtime friends, Bowdoin homeowners Robert Eger, 72, and Patti Eger, 62, officials said.

Eaton has been jailed since his arrest on April 18, the day the bodies were discovered. He was arrested near the chaotic scene along the highway.

Eaton previously told the Portland Press Herald, which first reported the change in plea, that he was not in control when he opened fire.


Washington
Audit finds low compliance by Seattle police with law requiring youth to have access to lawyers
SEATTLE (AP) — A new audit shows the Seattle Police Department has a low rate of compliance with a law requiring it to provide young people with access to a lawyer before they are interviewed.

The city Office of Inspector General’s audit, dated Friday, found officers complied with the law 4% of the time, based on an examination of 50 cases in 2021 and 2022, the Seattle Times reported.

Under a 2020 city law, after a young person is read their Miranda rights, police are supposed to connect them with a lawyer before questioning them or searching their vehicle, though there is an exception if an officer believes someone’s life is at risk.

The state Legislature in 2021 passed a similar law, under which police are supposed to call the state Office of Public Defense after an arrest and let the young person talk to a lawyer before questioning.

“Studies suggest that juveniles often do not fully comprehend the potential consequences of their actions, including waiving their rights after receiving Miranda warnings,” the Office of Inspector General wrote. “It is important that juveniles have access to an attorney to assist them in making decisions that impact their constitutional rights and have serious consequences in the criminal justice system.”

The audit found most officers seemed unaware of the requirements and of how to connect youth with lawyers. Audit recommendations mostly involved updating training and guidance, and police leadership agreed with them.

In a letter responding to the audit, Brian Maxey, the department’s chief operating officer, said it’s not always obvious whether someone is younger than 18. And, he wrote, the law only applies when someone is in custody and being questioned, not when officers are asking preliminary questions to determine if a crime has occurred.

Still, he said, the department agreed with the findings that “in some instances there are clear gaps in officers’ understanding of the laws and inconsistencies in practice.”


Wyoming
Actor accused of trespassing in a Yellowstone thermal area
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Pierce Brosnan, whose fictitious movie character James Bond has been in hot water plenty of times, is now facing heat in real life, charged with stepping out of bounds in a thermal area during a recent visit to Yellowstone National Park.

Brosnan walked in an off-limits area at Mammoth Terraces, in the northern part of Yellowstone near the Wyoming-Montana line, on Nov. 1, according to two federal citations issued Tuesday.

Brosnan, 70, is scheduled for a mandatory court appearance on Jan. 23 in the courtroom of the world’s oldest national park. The Associated Press sent a request for comment to his Instagram account Thursday, and email messages to his agent and attorney.

Yellowstone officials declined to comment. Brosnan was in the park on a personal visit and not for film work, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Wyoming said.

Mammoth Terraces is a scenic spot of mineral-encrusted hot springs bubbling from a hillside. They’re just some of the park’s hundreds of thermal features, which range from spouting geysers to gurgling mud pots, with water at or near the boiling point.

Going out-of-bounds in such areas can be dangerous: Some of the millions of people who visit Yellowstone each year get badly burned by ignoring warnings not to stray off the trail.

Getting caught can bring legal peril too, with jail time, hefty fines and bans from the park handed down to trespassers regularly.

In addition to his four James Bond films, Brosnan starred in the 1980s TV series “Remington Steele” and is known for starring roles in the films “Mrs. Doubtfire” and “The Thomas Crown Affair.”


Nebraska
Third mistrial declared in double murder case, but prosecutors vow to try man again
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska state prosecutors are vowing to try a man for a fourth time following a third mistrial on charges accusing him of killing two people in an Omaha home in 2019.

Last week, a judge declared a mistrial in the case against 24-year-old Nyir Kuek after jurors reported they were hopelessly deadlocked, 6-6, on whether to convict him.

Kuek stands charged with two counts of first-degree murder and other felony counts in the June 2019 shooting deaths of 50-year-old Tracy Atkins and 57-year-old Michael Sykora in their home. Investigators have said witnesses reported that Kuek and Sykora argued in the basement of the home before Kuek shot Sykora. Police believe Kuek then shot Atkins in Atkins’ bedroom.

Prosecutors have relied on circumstantial evidence, including the eyewitnesses, to try Kuek.

Kuek’s first trial ended in mistrial in 2020 when someone in the courtroom tested positive for COVID-19. His second trial also ended in mistrial when one person on the jury declined to find him guilty.

The Nebraska Attorney General’s Office, which is now prosecuting the case, will try Kuek a fourth time, spokeswoman Suzanne Gage said. A pretrial conference has been set for mid-January to discuss next steps in that prosecution.


Minnesota
Woman sues dentist after 4 root canals, 8 dental crowns and 20 fillings in a single visit
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minnesota woman has sued her dentist after receiving four root canals, eight dental crowns and 20 fillings in a single visit that she says led to her disfigurement.

Kathleen Wilson filed the lawsuit last week in Hennepin County District Court, accusing Dr. Kevin Molldrem of Molldrem Family Dentistry in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, of providing negligent treatment in July 2020 that caused significant injuries to Wilson, along with providing an unsafe dosage of anesthesia and falsifying medical records to cover it up, the Star Tribune reported.

Molldrem and his attorney, Nathaniel Weimer, did not immediately respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press on Thursday.

According to the Star Tribune, Wilson’s legal team retained Dr. Avrum Goldstein, a dentist in Florida, to provide an expert opinion and review Wilson’s medical records from Molldrem and subsequent providers. Goldstein’s Nov. 14 report identified various duty-of-care breaches.

Goldstein said in the report that Molldrem made the right diagnosis, but he provided poor-quality treatment.

Wilson had decay on “virtually every tooth in her mouth, something that is quite rare,” Goldstein wrote. Molldrem’s attempt to restore all Wilson’s teeth in one visit did nothing to address her susceptibility to disease or the potential of losing teeth, he said.

“Katie required a slow, thoughtful, careful and measured response to her disease. Trying to fill every hole in every tooth in her mouth in one visit is not only the antithesis of what was indicated, it is not humanely possible to achieve in an effective or constructive manner,” Goldstein said, adding that it is “inconceivable” to address 28 teeth in 5 1⁄2 hours.

One challenge of a long appointment is maintaining adequate anesthesia, Goldstein said. The maximum dosage is 490 mg — but Molldrem administered 960 mg to Wilson.

Wilson’s records show that Molldrem said he administered eight tubes of dental anesthetic, known as carpules. But Goldstein found the first dose alone was eight carpules, and he administered 15 carpules throughout the visit.

Wilson went to a different dental office for an evaluation showing recurrent decay and other damage. For several months in 2022 she was treated at the University of Minnesota Dental School “for repair and replacement of many of her restorations in an attempt to stabilize her mouth,” Goldstein said.

If all of Wilson’s teeth end up having to be removed and replaced with implants, Goldstein said “all of the work that was done and all of the expense associated with it will have been for nothing.”

Beyond medical costs, Wilson said she suffered pain, embarrassment, disfigurement and distress. She is asking for at least $50,000 in damages.