By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia
Eighteen months after the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that his sexual assault trial and subsequent conviction unconstitutional — and more than four years that trial — Bill Cosby is facing new lawsuits from five women who claim the now 85-year-old entertainer assaulted them decades ago.
Lili Bernard, Eden Tirl, Jewel Gittens, Jennifer Thompson, and Cindra Ladd have filed suit in New York claiming that Cosby took advantage of them when they were young.
Bernard was a fixture at Cosby’s 2017 and 2018 criminal trials and made a guest appearance as “Mrs. Minifield” in a 1992 episode of the Cosby Show.
She has claimed that she didn’t report the alleged assault, which she says occurred in the early 1990s, because she feared for her life.
Tirl claimed Cosby kissed her neck and pressed up against her back while she visited his dressing room on the set of “Cosby.”
Gittens alleged that Cosby drugged and assaulted her at his home, while Thompson and Ladd made similar allegations.
Cosby was sentenced to up to 10 years in prison following a 2018 conviction where a jury believed accuser and former Cosby love interest Andrea Constand, who claimed the entertainer plied her with 1 ½ Benadryl tablets and put his hands down her pants.
A jury in 2017 couldn’t reach a verdict in the Constand case – they were reportedly split 10-2 in favor of acquittal. However, in 2018, a different and more controversial panel found Cosby guilty.
In 2021, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court heard arguments from Cosby’s attorneys and prosecutors during an appeal of the trial before ruling that the trial and subsequent conviction deprived Cosby of his constitutionally guaranteed due process rights.
“What we found was what the state did was inappropriate,” said Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Max Baer.
Baer also said Bill Cosby had a deal with former District Attorney Bruce Castor, who refused to try Cosby because he opined that Constand wasn’t credible.
He brokered a deal with Cosby and Constand that allowed Cosby to pay a civil settlement with the understanding that testimony from a deposition would never be used to prosecute him.
“He went in and admitted his conduct because he had immunity,” Baer said.
“What we said is we’re not gonna let the Commonwealth, the state through the district attorneys, engage in that kind of reprehensible bait and switch. That’s to protect 13 million Pennsylvanians against that kind of conduct,” Baer said.
The U.S. Supreme Court in May of 2022 declined Pennsylvania prosecutors’ request to overturn the state highest court’s decision.
The justices let stand the decision that Cosby should never have faced the charges.
Cosby spokesman Andrew Wyatt issued a statement condemning the latest lawsuit.
“Unwilling to accept that actor and comedian Bill Cosby was vindicated by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, a pack of old alleged accusers have resurfaced to file a frivolous civil lawsuit against Mr. Cosby,” Wyatt stated.
“These alleged accusers were once represented by Gloria Allred and was part of a parade of accusers back in 2014 through 2016.”
Wyatt continued:
“As we have always stated and now America sees that this isn’t about justice for victims of alleged sexual assault, it’s all about money.
“We believe that the courts as well as the court of public opinion will follow the rule of law and relieve Mr. Cosby of these alleged accusations. Mr. Cosby continues to vehemently deny all allegations against him and looks forward to defending himself in court.”
The post Five Women Sue Bill Cosby in New York for Alleged Assaults That Occurred Decades Ago first appeared on BlackPressUSA.
