Cosby Found Liable in 1972 Assault; Jury Awards $19.25M in California
Cosby Found Liable in 1972 Assault; Jury Awards $19.25M in California
California civil jury orders Bill Cosby to pay $19.25 million for a 1972 assault, adding to a controversial legacy as the case unfolds in Santa Monica.
A California civil jury on Monday found Bill Cosby liable for drugging and sexually assaulting a woman in 1972, awarding $19.25 million after a nearly two-week trial in Santa Monica. Donna Motsinger, who said Cosby invited her to a stand-up show in Sausalito near San Francisco and later drugged her, testified she woke up at home without most of her clothes following the incident. Jurors allocated $17.5 million for past damages and $1.75 million for future damages, covering mental suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and emotional distress.
The case, filed in 2023, centers on Motsinger’s account that Cosby gave her wine and two pills she believed were aspirin, leaving her in a state where two men reportedly placed her in a limousine before the events she described. Cosby, now 88, did not testify during the trial. His attorneys argued that the allegations rested largely on speculation and noted that Motsinger has said she does not know exactly what happened.
The civil verdict comes years after Cosby was released from a Pennsylvania prison following a high-profile criminal case in which he was convicted of aggravated indecent assault in 2018; that conviction was overturned by the state Supreme Court. Andrea Constand, a Temple University employee who testified in Cosby’s criminal case, also appeared as a witness in the civil proceedings.
The jury’s decision could be followed by a punitive damages phase in a separate proceeding, and Cosby’s lawyers have signaled plans to appeal the verdict as they pursue further legal avenues. The trial highlighted a renewed focus on accountability in long-running civil suits tied to public figures.
