NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) — The Latest on the Bill Cosby sexual-assault retrial (all times local):
2 p.m.
Attorney Gloria Allred says a settlement agreement that Bill Cosby accuser Andrea Constand received shouldn’t be used against her and instead should be viewed as compensation for a person “who had strong evidence she was victimized.”
Attorneys for Cosby and attorneys for several of the women who have accused him of sexual assault spoke to reporters on the steps of the suburban Philadelphia courthouse as the trial broke for lunch Friday.
Cosby’s attorneys said again that they believe that Constand found a way to extort money from their client, and they believed the other women were regretful about a consensual affair with a married man.
Cosby’s attorneys are expected to cross-examine Constand, including about the nearly $3.4 million settlement she received.
The Associated Press does not typically identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault unless they grant permission, which Constand has done.
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11:50 a.m.
Bill Cosby’s chief accuser has told a jury that he drugged her with three blue pills and then sexually assaulted her at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004.
Andrea Constand took the stand at his sexual assault retrial Friday.
Cosby has said he gave Constand the cold medicine Benadryl and that she consented to a sexual encounter. His first trial ended in a hung jury.
Constand says Cosby called the pills “your friends” and told her they would “help take the edge off.”
Constand says the pills instead made her black out. She says she awoke to find Cosby penetrating her with his fingers and putting her hand on his penis.
She says she was still incapacitated and “was not able to do anything” about the assault.
The Associated Press does not typically identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault unless they grant permission, which Constand has done.
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11:30 a.m.
Bill Cosby’s chief accuser is telling jurors at his sexual assault retrial that she’s seeking justice.
Andrea Constand began testifying Friday at the courthouse in suburban Philadelphia. She’s getting a second chance to confront Cosby in court after his first trial ended with a hung jury.
The defense team calls Constand a “con artist” who framed Cosby for money. Cosby paid her $3.4 million in a 2006 civil settlement. Constand is telling jurors she has nothing to gain financially now by wanting him locked up.
The former Temple University women’s basketball executive says Cosby drugged and molested her in 2004, when he was a powerful trustee at the school. Cosby say she consented to a sexual encounter.
Constand follows five other accusers who also testified against the 80-year-old comedian.
The Associated Press does not typically identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault unless they grant permission, which Constand has done.
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8:30 a.m.
Bill Cosby has arrived for the fifth day of his sexual assault retrial where he’s expected to come face to face with his primary accuser.
The 80-year-old comedian walked into the suburban Philadelphia courthouse where accuser Andrea Constand is expected to take the stand Friday.
Andrea Constand’s appearance is her second chance to confront Cosby in court, since his first trial ended without a verdict.
The 45-year-old Constand says Cosby drugged and molested her at his suburban Philadelphia mansion in January 2004. Cosby says the encounter was consensual, but paid $3.4 million in 2006 to settle a civil lawsuit.
A spokesman for Cosby told reporters Friday that they’re confident he’ll be found not guilty.
Five other women have spent the week telling jurors that the entertainer is a serial rapist who also harmed them.
The Associated Press doesn’t typically identify people who say they’re victims of sexual assault unless they grant permission, which Constand has done.
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12:45 a.m.
Bill Cosby’s chief accuser is set to take the witness stand at his sexual assault retrial.
Andrea Constand’s testimony on Friday makes for a climactic courtroom showdown after five other women told jurors that the man once revered as “America’s Dad” is a serial rapist who harmed them too.
It’s Constand’s second chance to confront Cosby in court, since his first trial ended without a verdict.
This time she’s facing a defense team intent on portraying her as a “con artist” who framed him and scored a $3.4 million civil settlement.
Constand says Cosby drugged and molested her at his suburban Philadelphia mansion in 2004.
The Associated Press doesn’t typically identify people who say they’re victims of sexual assault unless they grant permission, which Constand and the other women have done.
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