Judge: Cosby accusers should get file from 2005 case
A federal judge in Philadelphia has denied a bid by Bill Cosby to block the release of files pertaining to the sexual-assault lawsuit he settled a decade ago with Andrea Constand.
A federal judge in Philadelphia has denied a bid by Bill Cosby to block the release of files pertaining to the sexual-assault lawsuit he settled a decade ago with Andrea Constand.
In a ruling Monday, U.S. District Judge Anita Brody declined to quash a subpoena for the documents issued last year to Constand's lawyer by seven women suing the entertainer in Massachusetts.
The dispute is the latest legal battle for records relating to the 2005 civil litigation and criminal investigation into Constand's claim that Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted her at his Cheltenham home - the same incident in which he now faces prosecution in Montgomery County.
The Massachusetts plaintiffs want the file to bolster their own claims against Cosby, who they say defamed them when he denied assaulting them sexually. At least three were prepared a decade ago to testify if Constand's lawsuit ever went to trial.
Their lawyer, Joseph Cammarata, cited portions of Cosby's 2006 deposition in which the entertainer says he gave Quaaludes to one of the women before having sex with her.
Cosby's lawyers have argued that giving his accusers access to the full deposition and other records related to the Constand case would violate the confidentiality agreement all parties signed in 2006.
Brody ruled that Constand's lawyer, Dolores Troiani, cannot turn over information that reflects the settlement amount or attorney-client communications. But she said Troiani can release portions of her case file that contain information about the women suing Cosby and other witnesses.
"Cosby will not face undue burden in his criminal case if Troiani produces her file," the judge wrote.
Brody ordered a telephone conference Wednesday to settle the appointment of a special master to review the file and determine which portions will be disclosed.
Cosby's representatives declined to comment Monday on the ruling.
Though more than 50 women have accused the entertainer of sexual misconduct, he has only been charged with an alleged attack on Constand, a former Temple University employee.
That criminal case is on hold as Cosby's lawyers appeal a ruling that a promise from a former district attorney in 2005 did not protect him from prosecution.
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