Tag Archives: bill cosby criminal case

Bill Cosby Accusers Request Pause on Defamation Lawsuit

Cammarata beat back a full stay of the case, but now he has reversed himself. Late last week, the attorney filed a motion to completely pause discovery of the civil lawsuit pending the end of the criminal prosecution.

It’s not every day when a plaintiff demands delay, but in the unfolding saga surrounding Cosby, there’s hardly much typical. The defamation case has numbers — six accusers — but the criminal one over Cosby’s alleged assault of former Temple University employee Andrea Constand has consequences. Should Cosby lose the Constand case scheduled to go to trial in Pennsylvania next June, he could spend most of his final days on Earth in a jail cell. What makes the interplay between the criminal and civil cases complicated is the possible trial testimony from many of Cosby’s accusers, including those suing him for defamation, but also others who are listed in court papers merely as knowledgeable witnesses.

In November, the Pennsylvania judge overseeing the criminal matter denied Cosby an opportunity to have a competency hearing to examine these women. At a court hearing next week, Cosby’s attorneys will argue they shouldn’t be allowed to testify for the prosecution about alleged prior bad acts.

In the meantime, Cosby has been pursuing depositions of the potential witnesses via the civil lawsuits.

“It appears that Defendant is misusing discovery in this action to conduct fact-finding for his own benefit in the criminal case,” states Cammarata’s memorandum in support of a stay. “This state of affairs should not continue, and there is little to gain in doing so.”

The plaintiffs’ attorney has been frustrated in his own efforts to investigate Cosby. For example, after Cosby filed counterclaims for tortious interference with his NBC and Netflix deals, Cammarata has been trying to measure the supposed harm to Cosby’s career only to be flummoxed by objections. Cammarata also deposed Singer in May, but didn’t get much because of the assertion of attorney-client privilege. Cammarata hasn’t been able to question Cosby about the nature of his relationship with female accusers, but he says that Cosby’s attorneys have been allowed to depose his clients.

“Since discovery began, it has been practically one-sided, in favor of Defendant,” writes Cammarata.

So now, upon word that Cosby wants to depose non-plaintiffs who may be testifying in the criminal action, Cammarata wants a time-out, doing what Judy Huth’s attorney Gloria Allred recently did in a civil case in California. There, Cosby’s attorneys fought against a discovery stay, telling the judge that the gambit represented a “breathtaking level of hypocrisy and gamesmanship,” and that the entertainer had a right to depose witnesses.

The Montgomery County, Pa., D.A. agrees with Cammarata and Allred, recently issuing a letter, expressing that “it is improper and inappropriate for the defendant or his attorneys to use the civil process to attempt to depose Commonwealth witnesses or otherwise gather discovery related to the pending criminal charges.”

Speaking of the interplay between the criminal and civil cases, it was the D.A.’s original decision more than a decade ago to not prosecute Cosby that allowed him to give a deposition in Constand’s civil case. The revelation of that 2005 deposition, where Cosby admitted obtaining quaaludes to give to women for sex, helped re-ignite the criminal case. On Monday, the Pennyslvania judge denied Cosby’s efforts to preclude the deposition at trial.

Sourced From – http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/bill-cosby-accusers-request-pause-defamation-lawsuit-952796

Hollywood’s Most Sensational Mug Shots REVEALED

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lindsay lohan

Lindsay Lohan has several mugshots under her belt, but her first booking photo from 2007 might be the best! She was arrested on July 24 in Santa Monica, Calif., after officers suspected she was driving under the influence. Cops also discovered a small amount of cocaine in her pocket. She pleaded guilty and was sentenced to one day in jail and 10 days of community service. She spent 84 minutes behind bars before being released due to “overcrowding.”
bruno mars
Singing sensation Bruno Mars was arrested in 2010 in Las Vegas for cocaine possession. The charges were later dismissed. Three years later, the star addressed his legal trouble in an interview with GQ Magazine. “I was young, man! I was in f–king Vegas,” the singer said. “I wasn’t thinking!”

Lost actress Michelle Rodriguez has been sentenced to five days in jail for drunk driving. The troubled star - who plays Ana Lucia on the hit TV series - was caught driving under the influence in Hawaii last December, near to the tropical beach where Lost is filmed. The judge in her Honolulu sentencing hearing today/yesterday (Tue) gave Rodriguez the choice between five days in jail and 240 hours of community service. The actress chose to go to jail. When Police arrested Rodriguez last year she had been out for the evening with her 'Lost' co-star Cynthia Watros, who was following her in a separate car. Rodriguez was driving a black Mercedes-Benz, while Watros was driving a Lexus 4x4. A police officer reported both cars were weaving across lanes and heading into a bike lane. Officers said at the time both actresses had blood-shot, glassy eyes and smelled of alcohol when they were stopped. Rodriguez, according to the police report, was a 'problem child' during the incident. Police said she was "very argumentative" and kept interrupting the police officer as he was explaining the drunk driving arrest. According to the report, Rodriguez said: "I don't f***ing belong here." Pictured: Michelle Rodriguez Ref: LBNY 250406 Q Splash News and Picture Agency does not claim any Copyright or License in the attached material. Any downloading fees charged by Splash are for Splash's services only, and do not, nor are they intended to, convey to the user any Copyright or License in the material. By publishing this material , the user expressly agrees to indemnify and to hold Splash harmless from any claims, demands, or causes of action arising out of or connected in any way with user's publication of the material. Splash News and Pictures Los Angeles:310-821-2666 New York:212-619-2666 London:207-107-2666 photodesk@splashnews.com www.splashnews.com

Michelle Rodriguez was arrested in Hawaii in 2005 after she was suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol. In April 2016, a judge had her choose between 240 hours of community service or 5 days in jail. She chose the jail time and also paid a $500 fine.

Hollywood actress Amanda Bynes poses for her mugshot after her arrest for allegedly driving under the influence in Hollywood.

Amanda Bynes was arrested in 2012 for DUI after she hit a police car in West Hollywood. In 2014, she entered a plea deal for the charge, promising to serve three years probation and to pay a fine.

Artis Leon Ivey Jr., a.k.a. Coolio, was arrested in Las Vegas in 2012 after he and a friend were stopped for a routine traffic violation. When cops ran his name through the system, they found he had two active bench warrants and he was arrested on the spot!

heather locklear

Heather Locklear definitely did not look her best in her 2008 mugshot! She was arrested in Santa Barbara for driving under the influence of a controlled substance after a witness called cops out of fear for the actress’ safety. In 2009, the case was dismissed after she promised to serve an informal three-year probation, pay a $700 fine and complete a 12-hour road safety class.

Shia La Beouf was arrested in Austin, Texas, in 2015 for public intoxication. Onlookers reportedly recalled that the Transformers star was behaving erratically outside a bar. He then started running down the street and jaywalked right in front of patrol officers. The status of the case is unknown at this time.

bill cosby

TV dad Bill Cosby was arrested in December 2015 and criminally charged for the alleged 2004 sexual assault of Andrea Constand. He was released on $1 million bail. The controversial case is ongoing.

bieber

On Jan. 23, 2014, Justin Bieber was arrested on suspicions of driving under the influence and drag racing in Miami Beach. He admitted to officers that he had been drinking alcohol, taking prescription drugs and smoking marijuana. He was eventually charged with DUI, resisting arrest and driving with a suspended license. Later on in 2014, the singer accepted a plea deal that required him to donate $50,000 to a youth charity and to attend anger management classes.
Iron Man star Robert Downey Jr. was arrested in 1996 for possession of a controlled substance. He was stopped for speeding on a Los Angles highway and was promptly arrested when cops found cocaine, heroin and a pistol in his car. In December 2015, California governor Jerry Brown issued an official pardon for the crime.
khole mug
Khloe Kardashian was arrested for driving under the influence on March 4, 2007. Just over a year later she reported to jail again for violating her probation and was sentenced to 30 days in jail. She was released three hours later due to overcrowding.
blac chyna
Blac Chyna was arrested at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas on Jan. 29, 2016, after causing a scene at the airport. She was eventually charged with third degree felony possession and public intoxication. She was released from prison on $8,000 bail, and the case is ongoing.
Sourced From – http://radaronline.com/photos/celebrity-mugshots-jail-drugs-drinking/

Bill Cosby Indecent Assault Charge Will Not Be Dismissed, D.A. Will Not Be Disqualified

  • By MICHAEL ROTHMAN

Feb 3, 2016, 6:00 PM ET

The aggravated indecent assault charge against Bill Cosby will not be dismissed, despite his legal team’s efforts to get the case tossed out, and the prosecutor will be allowed to stay on the case.

On Wednesday, a judge shot down the comedian’s motions in the case.

“We will appeal,” Cosby’s lawyer, Monique Pressley told ABC News in the wake of the decision.

Cosby, 78, was charged last December by Montgomery County First Assistant District Attorney Kevin Steele. A few weeks later, Cosby’s attorneys filed to have the charge dismissed, claiming that Steele brought it “illegally, improperly and unethically.” They also asked that the D.A. be removed from the case.

Yesterday, Bruce Castor, a former Montgomery County District Attorney, told the judge why he never charged the comedian when the alleged incident happened more than a decade ago.

There was never a formal document between the two men in writing, Castor explained, and he decided against drafting a document because he had no plans of prosecuting Cosby.

Castor also said accuser Andrea Constand’s “actions … created a credibility issue for her that could never be improved upon” and that statements from other alleged victims were “very old.”

Castor did say he believed Constand was telling the truth but argued that she had waited too long to come forward. Castor also said Constand contacted a civil lawyer in Philadelphia, weakening the prosecution’s case.

Today, attorney Jack Schmitt, who has been a legal adviser to Cosby since 1983, testified that he would never have let the comedian give his 2005 deposition in the Constand civil suit if he thought there was a chance Cosby would one day be prosecuted, according to the Associated Press.

Constand, a former Temple University employee, claimed the comedian invited her to his Pennsylvania home in 2004 and made two sexual advances despite her rebuffs. She also claimed Cosby gave her pills and wine, which made her unresponsive and unable to move. At that point, she claims Cosby sexually assaulted her.

Cosby gave the deposition in 2005, which was just released last year to the public after U.S. District Judge Eduardo Robreno unsealed it. In the deposition, Cosby admitted that he gave Quaaludes to one woman in the past.

Schmitt was the second witness the Cosby legal team has called on in the past two days in an effort to get Judge Steven T. O’Neill to throw out the aggravated indecent assault charge.

Constand’s lawyer Dolores Troiani has not responded to ABC News’ request for comment.

In addition to the deposition released from the Constand civil suit last year, the charge also came after a barrage of women accused Cosby of sexual misconduct, dating back to the 1960s. Cosby fired back in early December, filing a countersuit for defamation against seven women who previously accused him of sexual misconduct.

Read Full Article – http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/bill-cosby-returns-court-assault-case/story?id=36685259