Update: Bill Cosby Won’t Get Out Of Sexual Assault Trial

Update: A Pennsylvania judge has ruled against Bill Cosby’s request for immunity from prosecution, according to the Associated Press.

After a two-day hearing, Common Pleas Judge Steven O’Neill ruled on Wednesday evening that the sex crimes case against Cosby could continue. The actor’s lawyers had claimed that a legal deal made at the time granted Cosby immunity from charges in the 2005 sexual assault of Andrea Constand, which then-District Attorney Bruce Castor chose not to prosecute. Cosby was eventually arrested for the crime in December of 2015.

Constand’s lawyer testified at the hearing that she was never told that there was a deal that would provide Cosby with immunity. Additionally, current District Attorney Kevin Steele said that any deal made in 2005 was invalid. “A secret agreement that allows a wealthy defendant to buy his way out of a criminal case isn't right," he was quoted by the AP.

Update: December 30, 2015: Bill Cosby arrived at his arraignment at the small courthouse in Elkins Park, PA, at 2:30 on Wednesday afternoon accompanied by his lawyer. His bail was set at $1 million. He posted the ten percent necessary to be released via wire transfer immediately after the arraignment.

The case against Cosby was reopened in July of this year, after documents from Constand’s civil lawsuit were unsealed. An affidavit filed in the case stated that the mother of the alleged victim, Andrea Constand, called Cosby after the assault. According to the document, Cosby confirmed the assault and offered to pay for any counseling or therapy that Constand needed.

After the arraignment, Cosby went to the police department to be processed. Protesters from the community waited for him outside. “You’re a monster!” One protester shouted as he entered the station. “Shame on you! You not gonna get away with it anymore!”

The preliminary hearing in the case will be Thursday, January 14 at 9:30 AM. Cosby has been ordered not to contact Constand, and he has surrendered his passport. The charges against Cosby have a sentence of 5-10 years in jail or a fine of up to $25,000.

This story was originally published on December 30, 2015.
 

The Associated Press reports that Bill Cosby, the embattled family comedian who has been accused of a myriad of rapes and sexual assaults, was charged with sexual assault in Philadelphia on Wednesday morning.

First Assistant District Attorney Kevin Steele, speaking on behalf of the District Attorney’s office, told the press on Wednesday morning that Cosby had been charged with aggravated indecent assault, a first-degree felony. “Today, after examination of all the evidence, we are able to seek justice on behalf of the victim,” Steele said.

Cosby is accused of drugging and violating a woman in his home outside Philadelphia in 2004. Cosby has previously claimed under oath that the encounter was consensual.

Steele said that Cosby established a relationship with the alleged victim, Andrea Constand, through her work with Temple University’s basketball team, and she considered him a “mentor and friend.” On an evening in 2004, Cosby allegedly gave Constand several pills and a glass of wine, the effect of which rendered her unable to resist his alleged assault.

A previous district attorney declined to prosecute the case.

Many of Cosby’s alleged crimes have not been prosecuted because the statute of limitations has run out, preventing a suit from being filed. In Pennsylvania, certain sex crimes have a longer statute of limitations, of up to 12 years. The time limit would have run out for this case in January.

Steele stated that although the only charge filed at present is regarding the single 2004 incident, there may have been other assaults, as yet unconfirmed. “There are other alleged victims, and we are examining evidence in that,” he told the press. He also asked that anyone with information about other potential assaults come forward.

Cosby’s lawyer has been notified, and Cosby will appear at an arraignment in Montgomery County this afternoon.