The saying goes that you’re innocent until proven guilty, but as it stands around 60 women have accused Bill Cosby of rape, drug facilitated sexual assault, sexual battery, child sexual abuse, and/or sexual misconduct.
His current court case, however, sees him facing three counts of aggravated indecent assault, with Andrea Constand his accuser.
Back in January of 2004 Constand was a basketball coach at the Temple University where Cosby served as a trustee, and this is where things unravelled.
A little note before we dive in on why Cosby is only facing these charges, given all of the allegations against him, via Rolling Stone:
Despite the headline-making number of women who have come forward with their own stories of sexual assault – nearly 60 in all – Constand’s case is the only one that has led to criminal persecution since the other women’s claims are beyond the statute of limitations for criminal charges, which varies from state to state, but in many cases range anywhere from one to 15 years.
That doesn’t mean these other women cannot testify in the current trial as witnesses for the prosecution, and that’s exactly what Kelly Johnson did on day one.
Her testimony below via the Daily Beast:
In 1996, under the pretence of providing her with acting tips, Johnson testified that Cosby invited her to a bungalow her was renting at the Hotel Bel Air.
“He was wearing a bathrobe and slippers. He asked me to come into the living room. I sat on a couch and he sat adjacent to me on a chair,” Johnson began.
“There was wine and water we were having a little conversation,” she continued. “I wasn’t sure what was going on exactly. At one point he said that I looked like I needed to relax. He opened his hand and there was a large white pill in the palm of his hand. I said, ‘no no I’m fine,’ but he kept insisting, telling me I needed to relax. I asked him what it is and he wouldn’t tell me.”
Dressed in a dark suit, Cosby leaned forward in his chair at the defense [sic] table, listening intently as Johnson described reluctantly taking the pill under Cosby’s watchful eye.
Asked by the prosecutor why she acquiesced, Johnson [above] said she felt “extremely intimidated” by Cosby. Johnson said the pill made her feel like she was “underwater,” and explained what allegedly happened next.
“I sort of came to in the bedroom of the bungalow. I remember hearing sounds, grunting sounds behind me. My dress was pulled up from the bottom and pulled down from the top. My breasts were out. I felt naked but my dress wasn’t off me. I saw [Cosby] standing by the side of the bed. I could see a bottle of lotion… he put lotion in my hand and he made me touch his penis. He took my hand and manipulated my hand.”
The reason why Kelly Johnson’s testimony is so important to the case is that her accusation bears great similarity to that of Constand:
According to the charges against him, Cosby invited Constand [below] to his home on the pretext of talking to her about a career change she was planning to make. While she was there he remarked that she “looked like she needed to relax” and offered her three blue pills which she believed to be herbal supplements.
“After Andrea took those pills she began to have distorted vision, she became dizzy and nauseous, and she looked to her trusted mentor and friend,” said Assistant District Attorney Kristen Feden, describing the alleged assault to jurors. “The last words she remembers hearing before losing consciousness is ‘I am going to help you relax.’”
Constand says although she was unable to move during the assault she was conscious of Cosby fondling her breasts, and using her hand to masturbate himself. At one point he inserted his fingers into her vagina.
Right off the bat Cosby’s defence sought to discredit Constand, with lawyer Brian McMonagle going straight for the jugular. Here’s the New York Times:
He said the assault never happened, insisting that his client, while “a flawed husband,” was not an abuser. He described inconsistencies in her account, and conduct that did not suggest she was a victim, like taking her parents to see Mr. Cosby perform near Toronto after the alleged assault.
Mr. McMonagle [artist impression above] told the jury that phone records, not previously disclosed publicly, show that Ms. Constand called Mr. Cosby 53 times, some calls lasting half an hour or more, in the months after the encounter in 2004 at his home in Cheltenham, a suburb of Philadelphia. Yet when she went to the police nearly a year later, Mr. McMonagle said, she told them that she had not tried to contact him.
“Her story unravels,” he said.
Her story, and the stories of close to 60 other women, cannot all unravel.
The trial continues.
[sources:rollingstone&dailybeast&newyorktimes]
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