Editing Bill Cosby (section)

== Sexual assault cases ==
{{Main|Bill Cosby sexual assault cases}}

=== 1965–1996 allegations ===
The earliest allegation against Cosby dates back to December 1965: in 2005, Kristina Ruehli came forward as [[John Doe|Jane Doe]] #12 in the [[Andrea Constand v. Bill Cosby|Andrea Constand]] case and alleged that Cosby had drugged and assaulted her at that time in his Beverly Hills home. Further, Ruehli said she had told her boyfriend about the incident, and had told her daughter in the 1980s.<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--no by-line.--> |date=November 24, 2014 |title=Cosby accuser: I had 2 drinks, went blank |publisher=CNN |url=http://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2014/11/24/newday-cosby-accuser-kristina-ruehli.cnn/video/playlists/new-day-top-clips/ |access-date=December 30, 2015}}</ref>

In the early 1980s, Joan Tarshis told freelance reporter John Milward about an alleged sexual assault by Cosby. Milward did not write about the allegations.<ref name="washpost">{{cite news |last=Roig-Franzia |first=Manuel |date=November 22, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby's legacy, recast: Accusers speak in detail about sexual-assault allegations |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/bill-cosbys-legacy-recast-accusers-speak-in-detail-about-sexual-assault-allegations/2014/11/22/d7074938-718e-11e4-8808-afaa1e3a33ef_story.html |access-date=September 23, 2015}}</ref> In 1996, ''[[Playboy Playmate|Playboy]]'' [[Playboy Playmate|Playmate]] [[Victoria Valentino]] gave a videotaped interview in which she made sexual assault allegations against Cosby. The interview was conducted for an exposé on the lives of ''Playboy'' models, which was never published.<ref name="washpost" />

After the allegations resurfaced in 2014, [[Wendy Williams]] recalled that during [[The Wendy Williams Show|her radio show]] in 1990, she referred to sexual assault allegations against Cosby that had been published in the ''[[National Enquirer]]'' tabloid. Williams said Cosby called her boss in the middle of the broadcast demanding that Williams be fired.<ref name="ferrier_enquirer">{{cite web |date=November 21, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby Allegedly Tried to Get Wendy Williams Fired for Mentioning the Rape Accusations in 1990 |work=VICE |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-time-bill-cosby-tried-to-ruin-wendy-williamss-career-for-bringing-up-rape-allegations-allegedly-878/ |access-date=November 17, 2015}}</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K12WIUL-NtQ&t=19m44s ''The Wendy Williams Show'' (November 19, 2014)], clip telling her story about her 1990 ''Dishing The Dirt'' radio show (on 98.7 Kiss in New York) where she had discussed Cosby allegations as reported in ''The National Enquirer'', with Cosby personally phoning her station manager demanding that she be fired.</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUtiT9MMCEQ&t=3m51s 'Bill Cosby Guilty'], clip from ''[[The Wendy Williams Show]]'' (published to YouTube on April 27, 2018).</ref>

=== Later allegations and investigations (2000–2006) ===
On February 1, 2000, according to a statement provided by Detective Jose McCallion of the [[New York County, New York|New York County]] [[District Attorney]]'s [[Special Victims Unit|Special Victims Bureau]], Lachele Covington, who was 20 years old at the time, filed a criminal complaint against Cosby alleging that on January 28, 2000, at his Manhattan townhouse, he had tried to put her hands down his pants and then [[Indecent exposure|exposed himself]]. Covington also alleged that Cosby grabbed her breasts and tried to put his hands down her pants. Cosby was questioned and insisted "it was not true". The [[New York City Police Department]] (NYPD) referred her complaint to the D.A., but they declined to prosecute.<ref name="radaronline_secretly">{{cite news |date=November 18, 2014 |title=More Cosby Claims: New Accuser Secretly Told Cops About Unwanted 'Sexual Contact' With Bill—Read The Shocking Police Report |url=http://radaronline.com/exclusives/2014/11/bill-cosby-rape-claims-lachele-covington-police-report/}}</ref>

In January 2004, Andrea Constand, a former [[Temple University]] employee, accused Cosby of drugging and fondling her; however, in February 2005, [[Montgomery County, Pennsylvania|Montgomery County]], Pennsylvania's District Attorney said there would be no charges due to insufficient credible and admissible evidence.<ref name="cbc.ca_1.579908">{{cite news |date=November 8, 2006 |title=Cosby, Canadian woman settle lawsuit over alleged assault |publisher=CBC News |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/cosby-canadian-woman-settle-lawsuit-over-alleged-assault-1.579908 |access-date=December 6, 2014}}</ref> Constand then filed a [[civil claim]] in March 2005, with thirteen women as potential witnesses if the case went to court.<ref name="cnn">{{cite news |date=July 3, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby Fast Facts |publisher=CNN |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2013/06/24/us/bill-cosby-fast-facts/ |access-date=November 16, 2014}}</ref><ref name="WPost">{{cite news |last=McDonald |first=Soraya Nadia |date=October 31, 2014 |title=Is the world starting to turn against Bill Cosby? |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/10/31/after-jian-ghomeshi-is-the-world-finally-starting-to-turn-against-bill-cosby/ |access-date=November 16, 2014}}</ref> Cosby [[Court settlement|settled out of court]] for an undisclosed amount in November 2006.<ref name="cnn" /> After learning that charges were not pursued in the Constand case, California lawyer Tamara Lucier Green, the only publicly named woman in the prior case, came forward with allegations in February 2005 that Cosby had drugged and assaulted her in the 1970s.<ref name="WoolfGuardian">{{cite web |last1=Woolf |first1=Nicky |date=December 16, 2014 |title=The Bill Cosby sexual abuse claims—accusation by accusation |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/24/the-bill-cosby-sexual-abuse-claims-accusation-by-accusation |access-date=May 24, 2015 |work=The Guardian}}</ref><ref name="philadelphiamagazine">{{cite news |last=Fiorillo |first=Victor |date=November 17, 2014 |title=Q&A: New Bill Cosby Accuser Joan Tarshis |work=[[Philadelphia (magazine)|Philadelphia]] |url=http://www.phillymag.com/news/2014/11/17/bill-cosby-rape-sexual-assault-joan-tarshis/ |access-date=November 18, 2014}}</ref><ref name="NYT">{{cite news |last=Carter |first=Bill |date=November 14, 2014 |title=Cosby Is Off Another Show as Rape Accusations Swirl |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/15/business/media/appearance-by-bill-cosby-with-david-letterman-canceled-as-rape-allegations-swirl.html |access-date=November 16, 2014}}</ref> Cosby's lawyer said Cosby did not know her and that the events did not happen.<ref name="cnn2014">{{cite news |last=Leopold |first=Todd |date=November 12, 2014 |title=Rape allegations won't go away for Bill Cosby |publisher=CNN |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/11/showbiz/tv/bill-cosby-rape-allegations/ |access-date=November 16, 2014}}</ref>

In a July 2005 ''[[Philadelphia Daily News]]'' interview, Beth Ferrier, one of the anonymous "Jane Doe" witnesses in the Constand case, alleged that in 1984 Cosby had drugged her coffee and she awoke with her clothes partially removed.<ref name="MyUser_Foxnews.com_November_19_2014c">{{cite news |date=June 24, 2005 |title=Woman Details Alleged Cosby Sex Assault |publisher=Fox News Channel |url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/2005/06/24/woman-details-alleged-cosby-sex-assault/ |url-status=dead |access-date=November 19, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141120050646/http://www.foxnews.com/story/2005/06/24/woman-details-alleged-cosby-sex-assault/ |archive-date=November 20, 2014 }}</ref> In 2005, Shawn Upshaw Brown, a woman with whom Cosby admitted to having an extramarital affair in the 1970s, claimed in the ''National Enquirer'' that Cosby drugged and raped her the last time the two were together sexually. Brown is the mother of [[Autumn Jackson]], who claims to be Cosby's illegitimate daughter. Jackson was convicted in 1997 of [[extortion]] after she threatened to make the claims public in the ''[[Globe (tabloid)|Globe]]'' tabloid. In 2015, Brown went into more detail with her renewed allegations in an interview.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Gorman |first1=Ryan |date=November 26, 2014 |title=Cosby mistress claims comedian drugged and raped her, fathered her daughter |publisher=AOL News |url=http://www.aol.com/article/2014/11/26/cosby-mistress-claims-comedian-drugged-and-raped-her-fathered-daughter/20999599/ |access-date=January 17, 2015}}</ref>

On June 9, 2006, [[Philadelphia (magazine)|''Philadelphia'' magazine]] published an article by Robert Huber which gave graphic detail about Constand's allegations, and the similar stories told by Green and Ferrer about how they stated that they too were drugged and sexually assaulted. With these severe allegations against Cosby, Huber wrote: "His lawyers have gotten it pushed to the back burner, down to a simmer, and maybe it will amount to nothing, yet there is also the possibility that it will bubble up to destroy him."<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwqMST1KTcQ Reporter who saw Cosby's scandal coming], Bob Huber interviewed about his 2006 magazine article that highlighted Cosby allegations (2014 CNN report, uploaded to YouTube on Nov 30)</ref> The article was titled ''Dr. Huxtable & Mr. Hyde'',<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Huber |first=Robert |date=June 9, 2006 |title=Dr. Huxtable & Mr. Hyde |url=https://www.phillymag.com/articles/2006/06/09/dr-huxtable-mr-hyde/ |magazine=Philadelphia |location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |publisher=Metro Corp. |access-date=May 4, 2018 |archive-date=November 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181112232745/https://www.phillymag.com/articles/2006/06/09/dr-huxtable-mr-hyde/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> in allusion to both Cosby's character Cliff Huxtable on ''The Cosby Show'' and to a person having two starkly distinct "[[Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (character)|Jekyll and Hyde]]" personalities. This article also presented Barbara Bowman, who had come forward after having read about Constand's story, saying she could not sit in silence any longer. Details of Bowman's similar drug and sexual assault allegations were published in the magazine's November 1, 2006, issue. Bowman reported two incidents that happened around early 1986, wherein she was eighteen years old and working as an aspiring model and actress after her agent had introduced her to Cosby and he had become her good friend and mentor, saying that she escaped his attacks, returned home to Denver and Cosby thereafter subverted her career.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Huber |first=Robert |date=November 1, 2006 |title='Cosby Threw Me on the Bed', In a follow-up to our June profile of Bill Cosby, another woman steps forward with allegations against him. |url=https://www.phillymag.com/articles/2006/11/01/cosby-threw-me-on-the-bed/ |magazine=Philadelphia |location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |publisher=Metro Corp. |access-date=May 4, 2018 |archive-date=April 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200426083437/https://www.phillymag.com/news/2006/11/01/cosby-threw-me-on-the-bed/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

=== Hannibal Buress remarks (October 2014) ===
[[File:7.29.12HannibalBuressByEzmosis.jpg|thumb|179x179px|In a 2014 stand-up act, [[Hannibal Buress]] (pictured) publicly accused Cosby of rape]]
On October 16, 2014, as part of a comedy routine in Philadelphia, [[Hannibal Buress]] addressed Cosby's legacy of "talk[ing] down" to young black men about their mode of dress and lifestyle. Buress criticized the actor's public moralizing by saying: "Yeah, but you raped women, Bill Cosby, so that kind of brings you down a couple notches."

The audience appeared to respond to Buress's accusation as an incredulous joke, then he encouraged everyone to search "Bill Cosby rape" on Google when they got home. Buress had been using the same Cosby routine for the previous six months with little response,<ref name="cbs_buress">{{cite news |date=November 18, 2014 |title=Who is Hannibal Buress, and why did he call Bill Cosby a 'rapist'? |work=CBS News |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/who-is-hannibal-buress-and-why-did-he-call-bill-cosby-a-rapist/ |access-date=September 30, 2015}}</ref> but word of the October performance spread rapidly after being posted on [[Philadelphia (magazine)|''Philadelphia'']] magazine's website.<ref name="VultureTimelineOfAccusations">{{cite web |last1=Giles |first1=Matt |last2=Jones |first2=Nate |date=March 3, 2015 |title=A Timeline of the Abuse Charges Against Bill Cosby [Updated] |url=https://www.vulture.com/2014/09/timeline-of-the-abuse-charges-against-cosby.html |access-date=April 24, 2015 |work=[[New York (magazine)|New York]] |publisher=Vulture.com}}</ref><ref name="PhillyMagBuressRoutineVideo">{{cite web |last1=McQuade |first1=Dan |date=October 17, 2014 |title=Hannibal Buress on Bill Cosby: You're a Rapist |url=http://www.phillymag.com/ticket/2014/10/17/hannibal-buress-bill-cosby-rapist/ |access-date=April 24, 2015 |work=Philadelphia Magazine |publisher=Phillymag.com |quote=He gets on TV, 'Pull your pants up black people, I was on TV in the 80s! I can talk down to you because I had a successful sitcom!' Yeah, but you rape women, Bill Cosby, so turn the crazy down a couple notches.}}</ref><ref name="LATimesReBuressRole">{{cite news |last1=Braxton |first1=Greg |date=November 24, 2014 |title=Comic Hannibal Buress is low-key on his role in Bill Cosby firestorm |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-et-st-hannibal-buress-20141124-story.html#page=1 |access-date=April 24, 2015}}</ref> Media coverage intensified, with numerous publications tackling the question of how Cosby had managed to maintain, as Buress called it in his routine, a "teflon image" despite more than a decade of public sexual abuse accusations.<ref name="nbc_cosby_why">{{cite news |date=November 17, 2014 |title=Why Are Old Assault Claims Against Bill Cosby Back? |work=CBS News |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/celebrity/why-are-old-assault-claims-against-bill-cosby-back-n250161 |access-date=September 30, 2015}}</ref><ref name="accusertable_bowman">{{cite news |date=November 13, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby raped me. Why did it take 30 years for people to believe my story? |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2014/11/13/bill-cosby-raped-me-why-did-it-take-30-years-for-people-to-believe-my-story/ |access-date=September 30, 2015}}* '''Accompanying video''': {{cite news |last1=O'Connor |first1=Erin |last2=McKenna |first2=Ewen |date=November 13, 2014 |title='I will not live in silence anymore' about Bill Cosby |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/posttv/national/i-will-not-live-in-silence-anymore-about-bill-cosby/2014/11/13/d7aad67c-6b88-11e4-bafd-6598192a448d_video.html |access-date=January 10, 2016}}</ref>

Shortly afterward, ''[[USA Today]]'' reported that either Cosby or his representative posted a request for Twitter followers to "Go ahead. [[Internet meme|Meme]] me!" The tweet was deleted after a large number of the submitted [[Streisand effect|memes made reference to the accusations against Cosby]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Durando |first=Jessica |date=November 10, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby meme generator backfires on social media |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2014/11/10/bill-cosby-meme-generator/18832081/ |access-date=April 30, 2018 |work=USA Today}}</ref>

=== Additional assault allegations ===
After Buress's remarks came to the attention of journalist Joan Tarshis, in November 2014,<ref name="Hughes">{{cite news |last1=Hughes |first1=Jason |date=November 18, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby Is a 'Serial Rapist', Accuser Joan Tarshis Tells CNN's Don Lemon (Video) |url=https://tv.yahoo.com/news/bill-cosby-accuser-joan-tarshis-alleges-did-much-092100511.html |access-date=November 19, 2014}}</ref> model [[Janice Dickinson]],<ref name="Bueno">{{cite news |last=Bueno |first=Antoinette |date=November 18, 2014 |title=Janice Dickinson Details Bill Cosby Sexual Assault Accusations: He Raped Me |work=Entertainment Tonight |url=http://www.etonline.com/news/154076_janice_dickinson_details_alleged_bill_cosby_sexual_assault/ |access-date=November 18, 2014}}</ref> actress [[Louisa Moritz]],<ref name="Fox News">{{cite news |date=November 21, 2014 |title=Lou Ferrigno's wife Carla Ferrigno accuses Bill Cosby of assault; more come forward |publisher=Fox News Channel |url=https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/lou-ferrignos-wife-carla-ferrigno-accuses-bill-cosby-of-assault-more-come-forward/ |access-date=December 6, 2014}}</ref> actor [[Lou Ferrigno]]'s wife Carla,<ref name="Fox News" /> Florida nurse Therese Serignese,<ref name="huffpost-serignese">{{cite news |date=November 20, 2014 |title=Therese Serignese, Florida Nurse, Says Bill Cosby Drugged and Raped Her in 1976 |work=The Huffington Post |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/20/therese-serignese-bill-cosby-rape-victim_n_6188270.html |access-date=November 23, 2014}}</ref> ''Playboy'' Playmates Valentino<ref name="d7074938">{{cite news |last=Roig-Franzia |first=Manuel |date=November 22, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby's legacy, recast: Accusers speak in detail about sexual-assault allegations |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/bill-cosbys-legacy-recast-accusers-speak-in-detail-about-sexual-assault-allegations/2014/11/22/d7074938-718e-11e4-8808-afaa1e3a33ef_story.html |access-date=December 6, 2014}}</ref> and Sarita Butterfield,<ref name="Butterfield">{{cite news |date=November 23, 2014 |title=Playboy bunny claims Bill Cosby tried to kiss, fondle her |work=New York Daily News |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/gossip/playboy-bunny-claims-bill-cosby-kiss-fondle-article-1.2020517 |access-date=December 6, 2014}}</ref> actress [[Michelle Hurd]],<ref name="DailyBeastListofAccusersNov20143">{{cite news |last=Stern |first=Marlow |date=November 24, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby's Long List of Accusers (So Far): 18 Alleged Sexual Assault Victims Between 1965-2004 |newspaper=[[The Daily Beast]] |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/11/24/bill-cosby-s-long-list-of-accusers-so-far-17-alleged-sexual-assault-victims-between-1965-2004.html |access-date=December 6, 2014}}</ref> and eleven other women<ref name="DailyBeastListofAccusersNov20143" /> also made accusations of alleged assaults by Cosby committed against them between 1965 and 2004.<ref name="MyUser_The_New_York_Times_November_20_2014c">{{cite news |last1=Bowley |first1=Graham |last2=Manly |first2=Lorne |date=November 20, 2014 |title=7th Accuser Joins Claims of Assault by Bill Cosby |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/21/business/7th-accuser-joins-claims-of-assault-by-bill-cosby.html |access-date=November 20, 2014}}</ref> [[Charlotte Laws]] wrote a November 2014 article published by ''[[Salon (website)|Salon]]'' accusing Cosby of assaulting a friend of hers, with whom she subsequently had lost contact.<ref name="Laws">{{cite news |last=Laws |first=Charlotte |date=November 30, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby and drugging: My 34-year-old secret |work=Salon |url=http://www.salon.com/2014/11/30/bill_cosby_and_drugging_my_34_year_old_secret/ |access-date=October 10, 2017}}</ref> The following month, in a ''[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]'' article, model [[Beverly Johnson]] alleged that she was drugged by Cosby during a 1986 [[audition]], and that she knew other women with similar accounts.<ref name="Vanity_Johnson">{{cite magazine |date=December 11, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby Drugged Me. This Is My Story. |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2014/12/bill-cosby-beverly-johnson-story |magazine=Vanity Fair}}</ref>

Cosby's attorney said Dickinson's account differed from prior accounts she had given of the incident and released a statement that said in part: "Mr. Cosby does not intend to dignify these allegations with any comment."<ref name="Littleton">{{cite news |last=Littleton |first=Cynthia |date=November 19, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby Lawyer Disputes Janice Dickinson's Rape Claim |work=Variety |url=https://variety.com/2014/tv/news/bill-cosby-lawyer-disputes-janice-dickinsons-rape-claim-1201360149}}</ref> A follow-up statement dismissed the allegations as "unsubstantiated" and an example of "media vilification".<ref name="MyUser_The_Washington_Post_November_23_2014z">{{cite news |last=Singer |first=Martin D. |title=Statement by Martin D. Singer, attorney for Bill Cosby |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://apps.washingtonpost.com/g/page/lifestyle/statement-by-martin-d-singer-attorney-for-bill-cosby/1469 |access-date=November 23, 2014 |archive-date=November 25, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141125061238/http://apps.washingtonpost.com/g/page/lifestyle/statement-by-martin-d-singer-attorney-for-bill-cosby/1469/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> A joint statement from Cosby and Constand, who had received a civil settlement in 2006, clarified the statement released a few days prior by stating that it did not refer to Constand's case, which was resolved years ago.<ref name="billcosby.com/2014/11/1744">{{cite web |date=November 17, 2014 |title=Bill Cosby |url=http://billcosby.com/2014/11/1744/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20141202001407/http://billcosby.com/2014/11/1744/ |archive-date=December 2, 2014 |access-date=December 1, 2014 |publisher=BillCosby.com}}</ref>

In January 2015, Cindra Ladd alleged that Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted her in 1969.<ref name="Fisher">{{cite web |last=Fisher |first=Luchina |date=January 27, 2015 |title=Bill Cosby Faces New Accuser, Cindra Ladd |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/bill-cosby-faces-accusations/story?id=28516908 |work=[[Good Morning America]]}}</ref> In May 2015, Lili Bernard claimed that Cosby sexually assaulted her in the early 1990s, and that she had been interviewed by police in [[Atlantic City, New Jersey]], regarding the allegation. Because the state of New Jersey has no [[statute of limitations]] for rape, Bernard hoped charges would be brought, but media reports noted that "it wasn't clear{{nbsp}}...if what [Bernard] says happened to her happened in New Jersey."<ref name="Puente">{{cite news |last1=Puente |first1=Maria |date=May 1, 2015 |title=Cosby accuser aims for criminal charges |work=USA Today |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2015/05/01/new-cosby-accuser-aims-for-criminal-charges/26720395/ |access-date=May 2, 2015}}</ref>

On July 27, 2015, ''[[New York (magazine)|New York]]'' magazine's cover featured images of 35 women sitting in chairs with the last chair empty, suggesting there may be more victims who have not come forward yet. The 35 women told "their stories about being assaulted by Bill Cosby, and the culture that wouldn't listen". Eleven other women known to ''New York'' who alleged sexual assault by Cosby declined to be photographed and interviewed for the feature.<ref name="nymagexpose">{{cite news |last=Malone |first=Noreen |date=July 26, 2015 |title='I'm No Longer Afraid': 35 Women Tell Their Stories About Being Assaulted by Bill Cosby, and the Culture That Wouldn't Listen |work=[[New York (magazine)|New York]] |url=https://nymag.com/thecut/2015/07/bill-cosbys-accusers-speak-out.html |access-date=July 27, 2015}}</ref> According to ''[[Vox (website)|Vox]]'', the stories span "more than five decades" and are "remarkably similar, typically involving the comedian offering a woman a cup of coffee or some sort of alcoholic beverage—which may be spiked with drugs—and allegedly sexually assaulting the victim as she's impaired or unconscious."<ref name="Lopez">{{cite web |last=Lopez |first=German |date=July 26, 2015 |title=35 Bill Cosby accusers posed for one defiant, powerful magazine cover |url=https://www.vox.com/2015/7/26/9044867/bill-cosby-new-york-magazine |access-date=July 27, 2015 |publisher=[[Vox (website)|Vox]]}}</ref>

On September 17, 2015, [[A&E (TV network)|A&E]] broadcast the documentary ''Cosby: The Women Speak'', a program in which thirteen alleged victims were interviewed.<ref name="A&E">{{cite news |date=September 17, 2015 |title=Cosby: The Women Speak |publisher=[[A&E (TV channel)|A&E]] |url=http://www.aetv.com/shows/cosby-the-women-speak |access-date=January 10, 2016}}</ref><ref name="Pilkington">{{cite news |last=Pilkington |first=Ed |date=September 18, 2015 |title=Bill Cosby back in the spotlight as 13 alleged victims give TV interviews |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/18/bill-cosy-back-in-the-spotlight-as-13-alleged-victims-give-tv-interviews |access-date=September 18, 2015}}</ref> By October 24, nearly sixty women had claimed they were sexually abused by Cosby,<ref name="usatoday.com">{{cite web |last1=Puente |first1=Maria |date=October 24, 2015 |title=Two more Cosby accusers go public as total nears 60 |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2015/10/23/two-more-cosby-accusers-go-public-total-nears-60/74477228/ |access-date=January 18, 2016 |website=[[USA Today]]}}</ref> and the terms "[[sociopath]]"<ref name="DailyBeastListofAccusersNov20143" /> and "[[serial rapist]]"<ref name="Holley2">{{cite news |last=Holley |first=Peter |date=December 1, 2014 |title=Colleges cut ties with Bill Cosby as the list of women accusing him of sexual assault hits 20 |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/style-blog/wp/2014/11/28/colleges-cut-ties-with-bill-cosby-as-the-list-of-women-accusing-him-of-sexual-assault-hits-20/ |access-date=September 27, 2015}}</ref><ref name="Hughes" /><ref name="Thistlethwaite">{{cite news |last=Thistlethwaite |first=Susan |author-link=Susan Brooks Thistlethwaite |date=July 7, 2015 |title=Bill Cosby: Race, Gender and Serial Rape Denial |work=The Huffington Post |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/rev-dr-susan-brooks-thistlethwaite/bill-cosby-race-gender-an_b_7746964.html |access-date=September 27, 2015}}</ref> were used to describe him. Jewell Allison, one of Cosby's accusers, described him as a "sociopath"<ref name="DailyBeastListofAccusersNov20143" /> and stated: "We may be looking at America's greatest serial rapist that ever got away with this for the longest amount of time. He got away with it because he was hiding behind the image of Cliff Huxtable."<ref name="Holley2" />

=== Aftermath ===
[[File:Bill Cosby Protest in Kitchener, Ontario (15604932994).jpg|thumb|Demonstrators protesting against Cosby in [[Kitchener, Ontario]], Canada|226x226px]]Cosby has repeatedly denied the allegations and maintained his innocence. In November 2014, he responded to a question about the allegations and said: "I don't talk about it."<ref name="maya">{{cite news|last1=Rhodan|first1=Maya|title=Bill Cosby on Rape Allegations: 'I Don't Talk About It'|url=https://time.com/3596545/cosby-responds-rape-allegations-ap-video/|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|date=November 20, 2014|access-date=December 6, 2015}}</ref> In past interviews that were made public, Cosby declined to discuss the accusations.<ref name="KFORTV" /> However, he told ''[[Florida Today]]'': "People shouldn't have to go through that and shouldn't answer to innuendos."<ref name="KFORTV">{{cite news|title=Bill Cosby defiant about answering sexual assault allegations|url=http://kfor.com/2014/11/23/bill-cosby-defiant-about-answering-sexual-assault-allegations|publisher=KFOR-TV|date=November 23, 2014 |access-date=May 20, 2015}}</ref> In May 2015, he said: "I have been in this business 52 years and I've never seen anything like this. Reality is a situation and I can't speak."<ref name="theweek_555357">{{cite magazine|first=Stephanie|last=Talmadge|title=Bill Cosby addresses sexual misconduct allegations for the first time|url=https://theweek.com/speedreads/555357/bill-cosby-addresses-sexual-misconduct-allegations-first-time|magazine=[[The Week]]|date=May 15, 2015|access-date=May 16, 2015}}</ref>

In the wake of the allegations, numerous organizations have severed ties with Cosby, and honors and titles that were previously awarded to him have been revoked. Reruns of ''The Cosby Show'' and other shows featuring Cosby have also been pulled from syndication by many organizations. Twenty-five colleges and universities have rescinded honorary degrees.<ref name="Holley">{{cite news |last=Holley |first=Peter |date=December 1, 2014 |title=Colleges cut ties with Bill Cosby as the list of women accusing him of sexual assault hits 20 |newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/style-blog/wp/2014/11/28/colleges-cut-ties-with-bill-cosby-as-the-list-of-women-accusing-him-of-sexual-assault-hits-20/ |access-date=September 27, 2015}}</ref>

In July 2015, PAVE: Promoting Awareness and Victim Empowerment, a nonprofit group focusing on sexual assault prevention, launched a [[We the People (petitioning system)|WhiteHouse.gov petition]], calling upon President [[Barack Obama]] to revoke Cosby's [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] (which Cosby received from President [[George W. Bush]] in July 2002).<ref name="whitehouse petition">{{cite news |date=July 8, 2015 |title=Asked About Cosby Scandal, Obama Weighs In on a Sexual Violence Discussion |url=https://thehill.com/blogs/in-the-know/247230-group-calls-on-obama-to-strip-bill-cosbys-presidential-medal-of-freedom/ |access-date=January 29, 2016 |newspaper=The Hill}}</ref> Later the same month, in response to a question at a news conference, President Obama said:

{{blockquote|There's no precedent for revoking a medal. We don't have that mechanism. And, as you know, I tend to make it a policy not to comment on the specifics of cases where there might still be, if not criminal, then civil, issues involved. ''[long pause]'' I'll say this, if you give a woman, or a man for that matter, without his or her knowledge, a drug, and then have sex with that person without consent, that's rape. And I think this country, any civilized country, should have no tolerance for rape.<ref name="nytob">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/16/us/obama-wades-into-growing-sexual-scandal-surrounding-bill-cosby.html|title=Asked About Cosby Scandal, Obama Weighs In on a Sexual Violence Discussion |last=Shear |first=Michael |date=July 16, 2015 |work=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=July 16, 2015}}</ref>}}

==== Trial, conviction, and conviction overturn ====
With the exception of Andrea Constand's allegations, most of the sexual assault allegations against Cosby have fallen outside of the [[statute of limitations|statutes of limitations]] for [[criminal prosecution]].<ref name="WintonR">{{cite news|first1=Richard|last1=Winton|title=Bill Cosby's admission on Quaaludes may spur lawsuits against him, legal experts say|url=https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-bill-cosby-deposition-20150707-story.html|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=July 7, 2015|access-date=July 9, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Ax|first1=Joseph|last2=Stempel|first2=Jonathan|date=June 30, 2021|title=Bill Cosby home from prison after court reverses sexual assault conviction|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/us/bill-cosbys-sexual-assault-conviction-is-overturned-2021-06-30/|access-date=July 2, 2021|publisher=[[Reuters]]}}</ref> Numerous [[civil lawsuit]]s have been brought against him.<ref name="WintonR" /><ref name="AIG_Lawsuit">{{cite news|url=https://news.yahoo.com/bill-cosby-tells-judge-insurer-threatening-defense-against-135010455.html|title=Bill Cosby Tells Judge That Insurer Is Threatening His Defense Against Accusers|magazine=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=September 15, 2015|access-date=September 15, 2015}}</ref> Attorney [[Gloria Allred]] has represented 33 of Cosby's alleged victims. In July 2015, some of the court records from [[Andrea Constand]]'s 2005 civil suit against Cosby were unsealed and released to the public. The full transcript of his deposition was also released to the media by a court reporting service. In his testimony, Cosby admitted to [[casual sex]] with a series of young women involving the recreational use of the [[sedative]] [[methaqualone]] (Quaalude); he further acknowledged that his dispensation of the prescription drug was illegal.<ref name="Moghe">{{cite news |last=Moghe |first=Sonia |title=Cosby deposition: Quaaludes came from L.A. gynecologist |url=http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/24/us/cosby-deposition-quaaludes/ |publisher=[[CNN]] |date=July 24, 2015 |access-date=July 26, 2015}}</ref><ref name="NYT71815">{{cite news|first1=Graham|last1=Bowley|first2=Sydney|last2=Ember|title=Bill Cosby, in Deposition, Said Drugs and Fame Helped Him Seduce Women |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/19/arts/bill-cosby-deposition-reveals-calculated-pursuit-of-young-women-using-fame-drugs-and-deceit.html|newspaper=The New York Times|date=July 18, 2015|access-date=July 19, 2015|quote=...{{nbsp}}he presented himself in the deposition as an unapologetic, cavalier playboy, someone who used a combination of fame, apparent concern and powerful sedatives in a calculated pursuit of young women{{nbsp}}... He admitted to giving young women Quaaludes at that time 'the same as a person would say have a drink', he said, but not without their knowledge.}}</ref><ref name="Allred_33_AllegedVictims">{{cite news|first=Rodney|last=Ho|title=Gloria Allred wins Cobb Energy Bill Cosby concert protest case|url=http://radiotvtalk.blog.myajc.com/2016/09/09/gloria-allred-wins-cobb-energy-bill-cosby-concert-protest-case/|publisher=MyAgc|date=September 9, 2016|access-date=September 9, 2016|archive-date=September 11, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160911013439/http://radiotvtalk.blog.myajc.com/2016/09/09/gloria-allred-wins-cobb-energy-bill-cosby-concert-protest-case/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

On April 26, 2018, following a jury trial, Cosby was found guilty of three counts of [[aggravated indecent assault]] against Andrea Constand. An initial trial on the charges had ended in a mistrial when the jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict.<ref>{{cite news|first1=Eric|last1=Levenson|first2=Aaron|last2=Cooper|title=Bill Cosby guilty on all three counts in indecent assault trial|url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/26/us/bill-cosby-trial/index.html|publisher=[[CNN]]|date=April 26, 2018|access-date=April 26, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Kate|last=Reilly|url=https://time.com/4346387/bill-cosby-andrea-constand-sex-assault-accusation/ |title=What Makes This Bill Cosby Accusation Different From Others |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |date=May 16, 2018 |access-date=August 17, 2018}}</ref><ref name="Millhiser" /> On September 25, 2018, he was sentenced to three to ten years in state prison and a $25,000 fine, together with court costs of both trials.<ref name="NewYorkTimes">{{cite news|last1=Bowely|first1=Graham|last2=Coscarelli|first2=Joe|date=September 25, 2018|title=Bill Cosby, Once a Model of Fatherhood, Is Sentenced to Prison|language=en|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/25/arts/television/bill-cosby-sentencing.html|access-date=February 5, 2021}}</ref><ref name="BBCNews">{{cite news|date=September 25, 2018|title=Cosby sentenced to prison for sex assault|language=en-GB|publisher=[[BBC News]]|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-45644374|access-date=February 5, 2021}}</ref><ref name="ABCNews">Francescani, Chris; Hutchinson, Bill (September 25, 2018). [https://abcnews.go.com/US/da-asks-judge-give-bill-cosby-maximum-sentence/story?id=58063006 "Bill Cosby sentenced to 3 to 10 years in state prison with no bail during appeals"]. [[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]. Retrieved September 26, 2018.</ref> After a brief period in the Montgomery County Correctional Facility, Cosby was moved to a state prison, [[SCI Phoenix]] in [[Skippack Township, Pennsylvania]], on September 25, 2018, where he was confined to a single cell.<ref>{{cite web|first1=Meg|last1=Wagner|first2=Brian|last2=Ries|first3=Jessie|last3=Yeung|first4=Eric|last4=Levenson|url=https://edition.cnn.com/us/live-news/bill-cosby-sentencing/index.html|title=Bill Cosby sentenced to 3 to 10 years|publisher=[[CNN]] |date=September 25, 2018|access-date=September 26, 2018|quote=On Tuesday afternoon, Bill Cosby [...]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/celebrity/bill-cosby-now-inmate-nn7687-placed-in-single-cell/ar-AAAFunS?li=BBnb7Kz |title=Bill Cosby, now inmate NN7687, placed in single cell |publisher=[[MSN]] |date=September 26, 2018 |access-date=January 31, 2019}}</ref> On January 28, 2019, Cosby was moved from administrative segregation into the general population.<ref>{{cite news |title=Bill Cosby, isolated no more, joins other inmates in prison |first=Graham |last=Bowley |newspaper=[[Toronto Star]] |date=February 6, 2019 |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/world/2019/02/06/bill-cosby-isolated-no-more-joins-other-inmates-in-prison.html|quote=But last week authorities moved him from so-called administrative segregation to join the general population in a wing that houses other inmates, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections.}}</ref> On December 10, 2019, the verdict was upheld by the [[Pennsylvania Superior Court]] on the initial level of appeal.<ref>{{cite news |title=Bill Cosby loses appeal on sex-crimes conviction |first=Maria |last=Puente |newspaper=[[USA Today]] |date=December 10, 2019 |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2019/12/10/bill-cosby-loses-appeal-sex-crimes-conviction/4383819002/}}</ref>

On June 23, 2020, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court agreed to hear a further level of appeal of Cosby's sexual assault conviction based on questions about testimony from a witness being "more prejudicial than probative". The court would hear his appeal on arguments of whether it was proper for the judge to allow five [[Witness|prosecution witnesses]] to testify in the case about prior, unrelated instances of sexual assault, and to permit the jury to learn of a [[Deposition (law)|deposition]] in which Cosby admitted to giving Quaaludes to other women in the past to facilitate sexual encounters. The court also agreed to review whether Cosby's rights were violated by being prosecuted in the Constand matter, after a former prosecutor had informed Cosby that he would not be prosecuted for the assault, resulting in Cosby's agreeing to testify without claiming his self-incrimination privilege in his accuser's civil lawsuit.<ref>{{cite news |last=Li |first=David K. |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/bill-cosby-allowed-appeal-sexual-assault-conviction-pennsylvania-supreme-court-n1231900 |title=Bill Cosby allowed to appeal sexual assault conviction before Pennsylvania Supreme Court |publisher=[[NBC News]] |date=June 23, 2020 |access-date=June 23, 2020}}</ref>

On June 30, 2021, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturned Cosby's conviction, citing violations of his due process rights.<ref name="Millhiser" /> According to Justice [[David Wecht]], "Even though society has a strong interest in prosecuting crimes, it has an even stronger interest in ensuring that the constitutional rights of the people are vindicated."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/01/arts/television/bill-cosby-conviction-overturned-why.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/01/arts/television/bill-cosby-conviction-overturned-why.html |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |url-access=limited|title=Bill Cosby's Release From Prison, Explained|first=Charlie|last=Savage|newspaper=The New York Times|date=July 1, 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref> The following situation was cited: previously in February 2005, District Attorney [[Bruce Castor]] declared in a press release that due to insufficient evidence rendering a conviction "unattainable", he "declines to authorize the filing of criminal charges" against Cosby regarding allegations Andrea Constand made against him.<ref name="Millhiser">{{cite news |last1=Millhiser |first1=Ian |title=The court decision freeing Bill Cosby, explained as best we can |url=https://www.vox.com/22557691/bill-cosby-pennsylvania-released-commonwealth-david-wecht-andrea-constand-metoo-sexual-assault |access-date=July 1, 2021 |work=[[Vox (website)|Vox]] |date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> Castor said he did so to compel Cosby to testify in a civil lawsuit, brought by Constand, without the right to not incriminate himself as accorded by the [[Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution]],<ref>{{cite news |last=Weiss |first=Debra |title=Bill Cosby's sexual assault conviction is overturned because of initial district attorney's decision |url=https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/bill-cosbys-sex-assault-conviction-is-overturned-because-of-initial-das-decision |access-date=July 4, 2021 |work=[[ABA Journal]] |date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> so that Constand could win [[damages]] from Cosby.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Dale |first1=Maryclaire |last2=Richer |first2=Alanna |title=Why Bill Cosby's conviction was overturned |url=https://apnews.com/article/why-was-bill-cosby-conviction-overturned-2a65ec25c153fbd1c24b1c58a2b6e583 |access-date=July 7, 2021 |publisher=Associated Press |date=July 1, 2021}}</ref> Cosby testified that he had given Constand [[Benadryl]], and that he had separately provided [[Quaaludes]] to women he wanted to have sex with.<ref>{{cite news |last=Madani |first=Doha |title=60 women accused Bill Cosby. His conviction had been considered a big win for #MeToo |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/60-women-accused-bill-cosby-his-conviction-had-been-considered-n1272864 |access-date=July 4, 2021 |publisher=NBC News |date=July 1, 2021}}</ref> Cosby settled the civil lawsuit by paying $3.38 million.<ref name="nyt-overturned" /> Six of the seven Pennsylvania Supreme Court justices interpreted Castor's 2005 press release as a promise not to prosecute Cosby,<ref name="Millhiser" /> which led Cosby to provide testimony in his civil lawsuit that was later used as key evidence in his criminal trial;<ref name="nyt-overturned">{{cite news|last=Bowley|first=Graham|date=June 30, 2021|title=Bill Cosby to Be Freed as Court Overturns His Sex Assault Conviction|website=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/30/arts/television/bill-cosby-release-conviction.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/30/arts/television/bill-cosby-release-conviction.html |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |url-access=limited|access-date=June 30, 2021}}{{cbignore}}</ref> thus, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court concluded that Cosby's due process rights were violated.<ref name="Millhiser" /> The court further barred prosecution of Cosby "on these particular charges".<ref name="nyt-overturned" />

Cosby was released from prison on the same day that his conviction was overturned.<ref name="nyt-overturned" /> He had served nearly three years before Pennsylvania's Supreme Court overturned his conviction.<ref name=":2">{{cite web|title=Court Opinions and Postings {{!}} Supreme Court {{!}} Courts {{!}} Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania |url=https://www.pacourts.us/courts/supreme-court/court-opinions|access-date=July 11, 2021|publisher=www.pacourts.us}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2021/06/30/bill-cosby-sexual-assault-conviction-overturned/|title=Bill Cosby released from prison after sexual assault conviction vacated by Pennsylvania Supreme Court|newspaper=The Washington Post|first1=Sonia|last1=Rao|first2=Paul|last2=Farhi|first3=Manuel|last3=Roig-Franzia|date=June 30, 2021|access-date=June 30, 2021}}</ref> In November 2021, the District Attorney filed papers with the [[Supreme Court of the United States]] seeking to have the Court consider whether to overturn the decision of the state supreme court. Cosby's attorney filed a response in late January 2022, urging the Supreme Court to decline review. On March 7, 2022, the court declined to review the decision of the Pennsylvania court.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/bill-cosby-supreme-court-fcee33c9b309e0e5253b76a18e8325ac|title=Court declines review of Cosby decision|date=March 7, 2022 |publisher=Associated Press|access-date=March 7, 2022}}</ref>

Cosby's legal issues continued following his release from prison. In 2014, Judy Huth had filed a civil suit against Cosby in California, alleging that he had sexually assaulted her in 1975, when she was 16 years old. The trial began in 2022, and the jury ruled in Huth's favor. Cosby was ordered to pay $500,000 in compensatory damages.<ref name=":02"/>