Cosby’s lawyers apparently filed the civil lawsuit in an attempt to delay that criminal case.
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His lawsuit also names Constand’s mother, her Philadelphia lawyer, Dolores Troiani, and the publisher of the supermarket tabloid, The National Enquirer, which has been publishing scandalous stories about Cosby since way before the allegations against him resurfaced in October 2014. At the time, the District Attorney didn’t feel there was enough evidence to win the case, and chose not pursue prosecuting the erstwhile Dr. Huxtable.
Facing criminal prosecution for aggravated indecent assault, a second-degree felony, Cosby’s lawyers argued that he had received a promise from Castor that the case would never be prosecuted.
Audio clip: Listen to audio clip. In the call, which may have been illegally recorded, Cosby allegedly corroborated Andrea Constand’s allegations about what happened, according to the criminal complaint. Both Constand and her mother, Gianna, signed a non-disclosure agreement, Cosby’s lawyers allege.
“Defendants are blatantly violating their confidentiality obligations under the 2006 Confidential Settlement Agreement, including by intentionally disclosing information they promised to keep confidential as consideration for the settlement”, states the lawsuit.
Cosby, 78, filed the sealed breach-of-contract suit February 1, a day before that hearing.
“Cosby is requesting the court permit him to make accusations and statements regarding the underlying settlement while restricting the ability of the public to scrutinize those accusations”, their response said. She also claimed Cosby gave her pills and wine, which made her unresponsive and unable to move.
Previously, in 2005, Constand had accused Cosby of drugging her with pills and alcohol before sexually assaulting her at his Philadelphia home in 2004.
He has defamation lawsuits pending against accusers in Boston, Pittsburgh and Los Angeles.
Cosby’s lawsuit seeks repayment of the still-undisclosed settlement, plus interest, as well as damages.
As reported by The Hollywood Reporter and other outlets, Cosby filed the lawsuit against former Temple University staffer Andrea Constand under the cloak of seal, and was ordered to refile the complaint by the same judge who rejected his bid earlier this month to halt the case.
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As the days tick away to the start of the criminal trial against comedian Bill Cosby, he is pulling no legal punches.
