Bill Cosby’s wife was ordered on Tuesday to continue her deposition in a civil defamation lawsuit in MA filed by seven women who allege the comedian sexually assaulted them decades ago.
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Seeing as the deposition transcripts were unsealed in 2015, the contents of the entire testimony have now become public knowledge, which can work against the 78-year-old and will be hard to hide. However, the fact that that the contents of that testimony and his history are now public knowledge make it hard to put that genie back in the bottle.
Camille Cosby’s attorney argued the questions his client was asked in February were inappropriate, ranging from questions about her son’s death, to whether her husband has ever tried having sex with her when she was asleep.
Spokesman Andrew Wyatt said the judge denied the request to end the proceedings but also granted Camille Cosby’s request to limit the types of questions asked going forward, prohibiting plaintiffs from asking “improper questions”, including those involving protected communications between husband and wife.
The judges gave no indication of when they would rule.Cosby’s lawyers hope to keep the documents from being used in his related criminal case and other legal battles.
The media argues that the issue is now moot given the widespread coverage that ensued.
The deposition stems from a lawsuit filed by the accuser at the center of his pending criminal case. If you would like to discuss another topic, look for a relevant article.
Tamara Green, later joined by six other women, sued Cosby in December 2014, accusing him of lying when he publicly denied sexully assaulting her and the other six. She later settled for an undisclosed sum, and the file was sealed.
The judges have a number of options: They could find the issue moot and let the unsealing stand; find it moot but still reject the lower court’s “public moralist” reasoning; or rule in Cosby’s favour and reseal the documents, even if they could still be found online. “We already know these subject matters”, he said.
A federal appeals court in Philadelphia is hearing arguments Wednesday. Among those who have done so include his beloved alma mater of Temple University in Philadelphia where Cosby has donated substantially to the school and sat on its board of trustees.
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The judges didn’t give of a timeline for their ruling.
