Bill Cosby loses sexual assault lawsuit; woman awarded $19.25 million
· Toronto Sun
Bill Cosby has lost a civil trial in which a woman accused the 88-year-old comedian of sexually abusing her more than five decades ago.
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On Monday, a California jury found that Cosby was liable for allegedly drugging and assaulting Donna Motsinger in 1972 and awarded her $19.25 million.
In her lawsuit filed in 2023, Motsinger alleged that Cosby drugged and raped her after she drank a glass of wine in his limo.
The woman, who was a restaurant waitress in Sausalito near San Francisco, said in her suit that the comedian invited her to his standup show at a theatre in nearby San Carlos. She said Cosby allegedly gave her wine and two pills that she believed were aspirin and that she was going in and out of consciousness as two men put her in a limousine.
“She woke up in her house with all her clothes off, except her underwear on — no top, no bra and no pants,” the lawsuit alleged. “She knew she had been drugged and raped by Bill Cosby.”
Cosby has denied the allegations. His lawyer told The Associated Press in an email that he intends to appeal the verdict.
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Punative damages still pending
The jury awarded Motsinger $17.5 million in past damages and $1.75 million for future damages, including “mental suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, inconvenience, grief, anxiety, humiliation and emotional distress.”
The jury still had to deliberate on punitive damages late Monday.
Motsinger’s lawsuit echoed allegations of rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment made by at least 60 women against Cosby, all of which he has denied.
The former standup comedy and television superstar, once widely known as “America’s Dad,” became the first celebrity tried and convicted in the #MeToo era before his conviction was permanently thrown out when an appeals court found he gave incriminating testimony in a deposition only after believing he had immunity from prosecution.
— With files from The Associated Press.