Embattled comedian Bill Cosby was recently given a glimmer of hope in his criminal trial. Yesterday Cosby’s legal team filed a pre-trial appeal to have the case thrown out of court. However, the prosecutors in the case have stated that Cosby does not have a right to file a pre-trial appeal and should only be able to file a post-trial appeal if he is convicted of a crime.
While this issue is being resolved, the Pennsylvania Court has granted a postponement while it makes a decision on the pre-trial appeal. This will now delay the start of the criminal case with a preliminary hearing that was scheduled for next week. This hearing would have laid out the prosecution’s case and key evidence that led to the charge that Cosby sexually assaulted former Temple University employee Andrea Constand in 2004. Constand has accused Cosby of trying to silence potential witnesses by using a confidentiality agreement and has asked a judge to void the agreement. Cosby was relying on an agreement with former Montgomery D.A. Bruce Castor to not prosecute him over the charges. Castor did testify that he made such an agreement; however there was no written agreement.
Cosby is being accused by dozens of women of sexual assault in civil litigation in a various states. But the charges he now faces in Pennsylvania are the only criminal charges that have been filed. The accusations of sexual assault and his admitted affairs where he supplied Quaaludes to women have been devastating to his legacy. Cosby was stripped of honorary degrees and pressured to resign from the board of trustees at prestigious universities. In addition, TV shows in which he was the star have been removed from syndication and future projects have been canceled by major networks.
Cosby is free on a $1 million bond and could face 10 years in prison if convicted.
