A history of the scandal surrounding Bill Cosby from first accusations of sexual assault to criminal trial in Pennsylvania (Photos)
Bill Cosby’s retrial on sexual assault charges in the case of Temple University employee Andrea Constand began today in Norristown, Pennsylvania. Cosby faces 10 years in prison if convicted. Below is a timeline ranging from the first accusation against Cosby through his initial mistrial to today.
CNN
1965
In 2014, Kristina Ruehli accused Bill Cosby of sexually assaulting her when she was 22 years old.
Also read: 37 Bill Cosby Accusers: Complete Breakdown of the Allegations
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July 1997
Cosby admits to paying $100,000 to a woman named Shawn Berkes to keep secret an extramarital affair they had in the 1970s. But he denied he was the father of her 22-year-old daughter.
Also read: Bill Cosby’s Alleged Mistress Says, ‘He Didn’t Need to Do Anything to Get Women to Sleep With Him’
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March 2000 Lachele Covington files police report claiming Cosby touched her inappropriately. No charges were brought against Cosby.
Also read: Bill Cosby Accusers Blast His Wife Camille Over Claims Women ‘Consented’ to Drugs, Sex
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May 2004
Cosby delivers his famous „Pound Cake“ speech at NAACP Awards, criticizing too-permissive parenting by African-Americans. A judge later cited the moralizing speech when unsealing Cosby’s deposition in 2015.
Also read: The Fall of Bill Cosby: A Timeline of His Descent From Beloved Superstar to Accused Sex Offender
Twitter
Jan. 13,2005
Former Temple University student Andrea Constand files a police report accusing Cosby of sexual assault. She later files a civil suit citing 12 other Jane Doe accusers.
Also read: 5 Shocking Revelations From Unsealed Bill Cosby Deposition
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October 2014
A video of comedian Hannibal Buress doing a stand-up routine about Cosby’s reputation with women goes viral, bringing the accusations back to public attention.
Also read: Hannibal Buress Reveals ‘Death Threat From a Male Bodybuilder’ After Calling Bill Cosby a Rapist (Video)
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Nov. 18,2014
Former „America’s Next Top Model“ judge Janice Dickinson accuses Cosby of sexual assault. Cosby’s lawyers later call her a liar.
Also read: Bill Cosby Accuser Janice Dickinson Feels ‘Validated’ by Unsealed Court Documents
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Nov. 18,2014
Netflix cancels Cosby’s planned stand-up special after more than a dozen women come forward accusing the actor of sexual assault.
Also read: Why Netflix, Amazon, Hulu Haven’t Dumped ‘The Cosby Show’
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Nov. 19,2014
NBC drops planned comedy series starring Cosby. NBC Entertainment Chairman Robert Greenblatt later explains that the accusations had reached „critical mass.“ Also read: Ex-NBC Employee Claims He Wrangled and Paid Women for Bill Cosby
NBC
Nov. 19,2014
TV Land pulls reruns of Cosby’s 1980’s sitcom „The Cosby Show“ from the air just hours after the cancellation of his NBC series.
Also read: Pop TV Boss Compares Pulling ‘Seventh Heaven’ Reruns to Pulling ‘Cosby Show’
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Nov. 21,2014
Cosby receives a standing ovation at a stand-up comedy show in Melbourne, Florida. The rest of the tour is plagued by cancellations, hecklers and protests.
Also read: The Cost of Bill Cosby Allegations: Long List of Canceled Shows and Theaters Still Sticking by Him
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Dec. 26,2014
One of the comedian’s most outspoken critics, Judd Apatow, begins his Twitter crusade against Cosby. „Guys who rape a lot aren’t cool,“ the director writes .
Also read: Judd Apatow Doubles Down on Bill Cosby Criticism: ‘You Don’t Need Seven Prescriptions for Quaaludes’ (Video)
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Jan. 6,2015
Phylicia Rashad, the actress who played Cosby’s wife for eight seasons on „The Cosby Show,“ defends her former TV husband: „What you’re seeing is the destruction of a legacy. And I think it’s orchestrated.“
Also read: Judd Apatow Slams Bill Cosby, Calls Out Phylicia Rashad After Damning Documents Are Unsealed
ABC
May 15,2015
Cosby breaks his silence on the allegations in an interview with ABC’s „Good Morning America.“ „I have been in this business over 52 years, and I have never seen anything like this,“ he says.
Also read: Bill Cosby Breaks Silence: I Only Expect Black Media to Remain ‘Neutral’ Amid Rape Allegations
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July 6,2015
A judge makes public Cosby’s 2005 deposition from the Andrea Constand civil suit. In the documents, Cosby admits to obtaining Quaaludes to give to young women he intended to have sex with.
Also read: Bill Cosby’s ‘Pound Cake’ Lecture to Black Parents Made Judge Unseal Court Documents
NBC
July 7,2015
Bounce and BET-owned Centric networks pull all reruns of „The Cosby Show“ in the wake of the new revelations.
Also read: Why Netflix, Amazon, Hulu Haven’t Dumped ‘The Cosby Show’
ABC
July 14,2015
After months of defending her friend against his accusers on „The View,“ co-host Whoopi Goldberg reverses course, saying, „All of the information that’s out there kind of points to guilt.” Her reversal follows other former Cosby backers like singer Jill Scott .
Also read: Whoopi Goldberg Flip-Flops on Bill Cosby: ‘All of the Information… Points to Guilt’ (Video)
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July 18,2015
After obtaining the full 1,000-page deposition from the Constand case, The New York Times publishes excerpts that detail his history of womanizing with women as young as 19.
Also Read: Bill Cosby New Deposition Shockers: History of Womanizing, Drugs and Deception Revealed
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Dec. 21,2015
A week after Cosby filed a countersuit for defamation against seven of his accusers, the comedian sued model Beverly Johnson for defamation. A complaint filed in Los Angeles Superior Court accuses Johnson of trying to push herself back into the limelight with a false allegation that he drugged her and attempted to have sex with her.
Smoking Gun
Dec. 30,2015 Cosby was arraigned on felony charges of criminal sexual assault stemming from a purported incident more than a decade earlier in Pennsylvania involving a former Temple University employee. A previous district attorney declined to charge the star in 2005.
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Feb. 3,2016
Pennsylvania judge Steven O’Neill denies Cosby ’s lawyers‘ request to have the criminal sexual assault charges dismissed.
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Feb. 19,2016 Cosby drops the defamation lawsuit against model Beverly Johnson.
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May 24,2016
Montgomery County district judge Elizabeth McHugh finds in a preliminary hearing that there is enough evidence for the criminal trial to proceed .
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Feb. 24,2017
The judge rules only one of the 13 other accusers prosecutors had planned to call to the stand may testify at the criminal trial. The unnamed woman was previously employed by Cosby’s former agent at WME.
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May 16,2017
Cosby says in an interview with SiriusXM radio host Michael Smerconish that he likely will not testify at the trial.
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May 19,2017
Montgomery County Judges Thomas DeRicci and Steven O’Neill bar all electronic communications from the courthouse, meaning the trial will not be televised and journalists will be barred from live-tweeting.
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May 24,2017
A jury is selected for Cosby’s trial.
