Ashton Kutcher steps down from child abuse prevention charity following controversy surrounding his support for accused rapist Danny Masterson

Ashton Kutcher has stepped down from his anti-child sex abuse charity, Thorn, following backlash over a letter of support he wrote to a judge after Danny Masterson's rape conviction. In his resignation letter to the charity, Kutcher acknowledged that his support letter was a mistake in judgment. Masterson was found guilty of raping two women and received a sentence of 30 years to life in prison. Kutcher's wife, actress Mila Kunis, also sent a similar letter of support. Both letters, as well as the subsequent apologies from Kutcher and Kunis, received widespread criticism from victims and advocacy groups. Kutcher expressed his regret in a resignation letter shared online, stating that recent events had led him to step down from the board of Thorn. After spending several days listening, reflecting, and conversing with survivors and Thorn's employees and leadership, Kutcher concluded that resigning as chairman of the board was the responsible course of action. He emphasized that he cannot allow his error in judgment to detract from their efforts and the children they serve. Established in 2012 by Kutcher and his ex-wife Demi Moore, Thorn primarily focuses on combating the sexual exploitation of children, particularly through the internet. The organization has identified 27,000 child victims and successfully removed over two million potentially abusive files from the internet. In his resignation message, Kutcher admitted that his letter of support for Masterson had further perpetuated the painful tendency to question and doubt victims who bravely share their experiences. He acknowledged that this goes against the progress made in the past decade and is something they have actively worked to change.