Eddie Murphy renewed feud with Bill Cosby in Stage Bit
Cosby saw his career torched after multiple allegations of rape and sexual assault were made against him. He was the subject of multiple civil and criminal cases, was sentenced to three years in prison and has not worked since 2014.
The disgraced comedian was found guilty of three charges of aggravated indecent assault in 2018 and was sentenced to a maximum of ten years behind bars. But in 2021, the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court overturned the conviction, leading to Bill’s release from prison.
More than 60 women have accused comedian Cosby of several crimes, including rape, drug-facilitated sexual assault, sexual assault, child sexual abuse and sexual harassment.
The alleged incidents date from the mid-1960s to 2008 and reportedly occurred in ten US states and one Canadian province.
They describe a clear and predatory pattern of behavior, with the common element being the alleged use of drugs. Cosby was accused of offering women potions or pills such as Quaaludes or “herbal pills” — which prosecutors say were incapacitating — that left them unconscious or physically “frozen” and unable to resist or move.
In a 2005 civil deposition, Cosby admitted that he obtained Quaaludes with the intention of giving them to women for s–. Many accusers were aspiring models, actresses or involved in the entertainment industry and viewed Cosby as a mentor or father figure, whom he reportedly used to gain their trust before the attacks.
The women describe being sexually assaulted while disabled, disoriented or completely unconscious.
Some accusers said they then received payments from Cosby, which they saw as a way to ensure their silence. A former NBC employee claimed he paid off eight women on Cosby’s behalf in the 1970s.
Due to statutes of limitations, most allegations have not resulted in criminal charges. However, the allegations led to significant legal action. Cosby was criminally charged in Pennsylvania based on allegations made by Andrea Constand, a former Temple University employee.
In 2018, he was found guilty of three counts of aggravated indecent assault and sentenced to three to 10 years in prison. His conviction was overturned by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in June 2021 on a procedural issue related to an unwritten non-prosecution agreement with a former prosecutor, which led to his release from prison.
Numerous civil lawsuits have been filed against Cosby. In 2022, a Los Angeles jury found Cosby liable for sexually assaulting Judy Huth at the Playboy Mansion in 1975 when she was a teenager, and awarded her $500,000 in damages.
In 2023, nine more women filed sexual abuse lawsuits against Cosby in Nevada. Cosby has consistently maintained his innocence and denied all allegations, stating the encounters were consensual.
In a 2005 affidavit for a civil lawsuit, Cosby admitted that he obtained the narcotic Quaaludes with the intention of giving them to women he wanted to have contact with. He acknowledged in the statement that he gave the drugs to at least one woman and then had sex with her, and said he did not take the drugs himself.
Cosby denied in the same statement that he gave the substances to women without their knowledge or consent, claiming the sexual encounters were consensual. When asked if he had ever given the drug to a woman without her knowledge, his lawyer told him not to answer.
He stated that he offered the drug the same way he would offer someone a drink.
