Florida nurse Theresa Serignese contends Bill Cosby drugged and raped her in 1976
This week began with two women, publicist Joan Tarshis and model Janice Dickinson, claiming publicly that comedian Bill Cosby raped them in separate incidents in 1969 and 1982, respectively. Now, another woman, Florida nurse Theresa Serignese, claims that Cosby drugged and raped her in 1976.
This week began with two women, publicist Joan Tarshis and model Janice Dickinson, claiming publicly that comedian Bill Cosby raped them in separate incidents in 1969 and 1982, respectively.
Now, another woman, Florida nurse Theresa Serignese, claims that Cosby drugged and raped her in 1976.
Serignese, 57, is the seventh woman to publicly accuse Cosby of sexual assault, and has identified herself as one of the 12 anonymous women — Jane Doe #10 — enlisted to testify against Cosby in Andrea Constand's 2005 case, which was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum.
Huffington Post interviewed Serignese to get a detailed account of her allegations, with the nurse saying that she first met Cosby in 1976 at the age of 19 in Las Vegas:
I was 19 and my younger sister was 14. And we were just looking at jewelry at the Hilton and somebody came up to me and put their arm around my neck from the back and said: "Will you marry me?" And I turned around to see who it was, and it was Bill Cosby.
From there, she claims that someone in Cosby's entourage escorted her to the Las Vegas Hilton's greenroom following a show, where she remained until she and Cosby were alone. From there, a now-familiar series of events begins to crop up:
He had two large white pills in his hand and a glass of water. And he said: "Here, take these." Now, I went to Catholic school, I learned to be obedient, and this was an authority. This was like my father. This was like my teacher; like the president. This was an authority [figure]. So, I did it. I took the pills.
The next memory I have was in a bathroom, and the bathroom mirror was there and maybe a cabinet was open or something. I was bending forward and he was behind me having sex with me. I was being raped. I felt drugged and I was being raped, and it was kind of surreal.
However, despite the alleged assault, Serignese says that she called the comedian sometime later and ultimately allowed him to put her up in a room in the penthouse of the Hilton for a few weeks. After that, she's says she was kicked out over a pregnancy scare, but maintained sporadic contact with Cosby for the next 20 years.
Serignese also says she accepted cash and gifts from Cosby and alleges that she had one consensual sexual encounter with the comedian in 1985:
She claims that she continued to have intermittent contact with Cosby over the next 20 years, including at least one subsequent sexual encounter around 1985. She also accepted two payments from him in 1996 after she sustained serious injuries in a car accident, including a $5,000 check from his agent, but she never came forward publicly about the assault for fear that no one would believe her.
That did not keep her from agreeing to testify in Andrea Constand's case, with Serignese telling HuffPo that she called the Philadelphia Police with a complaint after seeing the story go public a decade ago:
Ten years ago, when I saw this Andrea Constand make a complaint, I was angry. I called the Philadelphia police department up and I told them my story…I'm Jane Doe #10.
Cosby has previously stated that he would not address the ongoing rape allegations — a resolution that has continued in this case. He has not been charged with any crime or stood trial in any of the cases.
[HuffPo]