Bill Cosby's lawyer repeatedly demanded a mistrial in his sex assault trial as five days of deliberations on the fate of the man once known as America's Dad pushed into Father's Day weekend, but the judge said there was no precedent to shut down the jury's talks.
Defense attorneys had pushed to select a jury from another county because of intense pretrial publicity in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, where District Attorney Kevin Steele, during his 2015 election campaign, had been critical of one of his predecessors for not prosecuting Cosby. His deposition testimony in her civil suit revealed the man who has a bestselling book about fatherhood had procured Quaaludes for the goal of having sex with women who were not his wife. The Pennsylvanian judge then declared a mistrial.
Prosecutors argued Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted Constand. Afterward, he says the two had consensual sex inside his home.
He said Constand "has shown such courage through this".
But a lawyer representing many of his accusers, Gloria Allred, said she was hoping the prosecution would push for a retrial.
The prosecution had rested its case last Friday, and the defense presented a case Monday that lasted just six minutes - in essence telling the jury that prosecutors had failed to prove anything, and that there was little or nothing left for them to rebut.
But it could "embolden other prosecutors to be more aggressive in their charges" since it has "such a symbolic value", he said.
Cosby's civil lawyers still are fighting lawsuits against him by 10 women around the country.
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Cosby also is battling sexual battery or defamation cases still pending by 10 women in California and MA.
Bill Cosby trial - Round 1?
But the same judge Cosby's wife Camille called "arrogant" in a scathing statement after the mistrial was declared Saturday near Philadelphia is likely to preside over his retrial. She also recalled a Los Angeles case where an 11-1 vote to acquit in the first trial ended with a conviction the second time around. "I have no real recollection except later I was jolted awake", she said, going on to describe how he used his hand to violate her.
In his private area, Cosby spoke with her often on the phone, the source claimed.
The Hollywood icon remains free on bail pending the new trial. "It has been restored". They say he sexually abused them decades ago and then defamed them after they went public by having his agents deny the claims and brand them liars. He also found success with his "Fat Albert" animated TV show and starred in commercials for Jell-O pudding.
Three of the questions were requests to review what Cosby said and another two were about the testimony of his accuser, Andrea Constand. Legal experts believe prosecutors will reshape their case for Round Two, although it's not yet clear why jurors couldn't reach a verdict, or how close they came. Judge Steven O'Neill instructed them to keep working toward a unanimous decision.
The judge sought to comfort the jurors, at least one of whom fought back tears, calling their epic deliberation "one of the more courageous acts, one of the more selfless acts that I've seen in the justice system". And so it is, you know, very hard to make the conviction on rape, you know, especially on evidence like this that is, you know, frankly quite old. Serignese and Bowman attended the criminal trial near Philadelphia.
A decade later, another district attorney reopened the investigation after his lurid deposition became public, and dozens of women came forward against one of the most beloved stars in all of show business. He was charged shortly before the statute of limitation was set to expire.
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