Why is Bill Cosby a free man? Investigate the sexual assault cases
How is Bill Cosby now a free man despite the disturbing sexual assault cases that have been made against him? Today, on Wednesday, June 30th, the eighty-three-year-old former stand-up comedian and actor strolled out of prison a free man in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania after serving only more than two years out of a three-to-ten-year prison sentence. Let’s take a look at all the details from the horrible case of Bill Cosby here.
I have never changed my stance nor my story. I have always maintained my innocence.
Thank you to all my fans, supporters and friends who stood by me through this ordeal. Special thanks to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court for upholding the rule of law. #BillCosby pic.twitter.com/bxELvJWDe5— Bill Cosby (@BillCosby) June 30, 2021
Now a free man
As Bill Cosby walked out of prison free today despite the numerous sexual assault cases he was convicted of, the former comedian held up a V-for-victory sign with his two fingers right outside of his home in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania as the rest of the star’s legal team made statements to the public on his behalf. One of his lawyers, Jennifer Bonjean, remarked that he and his legal team were happy with the case’s outcome.
Jennifer Bonjean told the public: “We are thrilled to have Mr. Cosby home. He served three years of an unjust sentence and he did it with dignity and principle and he was a mentor to other people. He was doing the time – the time was not doing him”. The lawyer also added in the statement: “We knew all along he shouldn’t have been prosecuted for this”.
Bill Cosby even tweeted later on himself: “I have never changed my stance nor my story. I have always maintained my innocence. Thank you to all my fans, supporters, and friends who stood by me through this ordeal. Special thanks to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court for upholding the rule of law”. But is Bill Cosby actually innocent, or did his legal team just find a lucky loophole out of his sexual assault cases? Let’s take a look.
The case
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court had vacated the 2018 conviction of Bill Cosby for his sexual assault cases when he was found guilty of drugging and molesting Andrea Constand, a Temple University worker, at his home back in 2004. Andrea Constand’s story eventually inspired dozens of other women to step forward with similar accusations made against the former comedian and actor.
So what exactly happened that made Bill Cosby a free man despite being found guilty on his sexual assault cases? Well, the star appealed his conviction this past year, and the court ended up making a split decision that a deal Cosby made with a former district attorney that he would not be charged should have allowed him to not be prosecuted. Yeah, you read that right. Cosby was able to walk out a free man thanks to a loophole.
Yahoo! News wrote: “That official, Bruce L. Castor Jr., who went on to defend former President Donald Trump in his second impeachment trial, had pledged not to charge the former TV dad if he ‘agreed to sit for a deposition in a civil case’ that Constand had filed”. Clearly, this has caused an uproar not just from his victims and accusers, but from folks all around the world as well.
Lisa Bloom, an attorney who represents one of Bill Cosby’s accusers, emphasized to the public that this ruling in no way meant that the former comedian and actor was found innocent. The attorney said: “They did not say that he is exonerated. They did not say that there was insufficient evidence to convict him”.
“Instead, they said that he should never have been prosecuted in the first place because a prosecutor many years ago, back in 2005, promised that he would not prosecute him. And a subsequent prosecutor then came in and decided to do it. And ultimately, Cosby was convicted. But that was the only reason in the court’s decision and nobody should take this as a finding of innocence”, Bloom specified.
