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Bijou Phillips and Danny Masterson (on their way to trial in May 2023)
Photo: Chris Pizzello / dpa
Less than two weeks after the imposition of a long prison sentence against US actor Danny Masterson (47, "The Wild Seventies") for rape, his wife, model and actress Bijou Phillips, has filed for divorce. The 43-year-old had made the application in Santa Barbara, California, US media reported on Tuesday (local time).
Phillips' priority is their daughter, her lawyer, Peter Lauzon, said, according to CNN. "This time has been incredibly difficult for the marriage and for the family," the lawyer said.
Masterson was found guilty of raping two women in 2003 in a criminal trial at the end of May. On September 7, a judge in Los Angeles handed down a sentence of 30 years in prison. Masterson's lawyers plan to appeal the verdict. Masterson had always denied the allegations. All sexual acts were consensual, the actor asserted in the trial.
The announcement of the sentence was attended by several family members in the courtroom, including his wife Phillips. The police investigation had begun in 2017. Among the plaintiffs was a former girlfriend of the actor.
Masterson and Phillips had married in 2011. Their daughter was born in 2014. Phillips, who starred in films such as "Almost Famous" and "Hostel 2", comes from the marriage of "The Mamas and the Papas" singer John Phillips to singer and actress Geneviève Waïte.
phw/dpa