Bill Cosby faces more legal trouble for alleged sexual assault, more than a year later he was released from prison in 2021.
In a lawsuit filed Monday in New York state court, five women, including “Cosby Show” actresses Lili Bernard and Eden Tirl, claimed they were “sexually abused or assaulted” by the former TV star, the The Associated Press reported Tuesday. Bernard, Tirl and Cindra Ladd, who previously spoke about Cosby’s alleged behavior, are suing the actor along with fellow plaintiffs Jewel Gittens and Jennifer Thompson under New York’s one-year deadline for adults to file sexual assault complaints. .
Costume (via Hill) it also claims that NBC and the television companies Kaufman Astoria Studios and Carsey-Werner Television are “guilty and responsible” for Cosby’s alleged sexual assault. “The Cosby Show” was filmed at Kaufman Astoria Studios, produced by Carsey-Werner; it aired on NBC from 1984 to 1992.
In a statement to The Times on Tuesday, Cosby’s representative, Andrew Wyatt, called the latest lawsuit “frivolous.”
“These alleged accusers were once represented by [Attorney Gloria Allred] and they were part of the parade of accusers from 2014 to 2016. As we have always said, and now America can see, this is not about justice for victims of alleged sexual assault, it is ALL about MONEY,” Wyatt said in an email. electronic. statement.
“We believe that the courts, as well as the court of public opinion, will follow the rule of law and clear Mr. Cosby of these alleged allegations. Mr. Cosby continues to vehemently deny all the allegations against him and looks forward to defending himself in court.”
Representatives for NBC and Carsey-Werner did not immediately respond to The Times’s request for comment Tuesday. Kaufman Astoria Studios could not be reached for comment.
The 34-page complaint details multiple separate instances of alleged rape and drug use by Cosby during the 1960s and into the 1990s. Several of the defendants alleged that the 85-year-old Cosby had planted an “intoxicant” in their drinks and had raped them. The allegations were consistent with those of women who had previously spoken out against Cosby.
The lawsuit alleges that Cosby threatened to “blacklist” one of the plaintiffs if she resisted his forceful sexual advances or spoke out against his behavior. The women say that NBC, Kaufman Astoria and Carsey-Werner “should have known that Bill Cosby was a danger to women” and that the companies “gave Bill Cosby power or the appearance of power…to access and sexually abuse women ”.
In September 2018, Cosby was sentenced to between three and 10 years in prison for sexual assault after multiple women, including Tamara Green and Victoria Valentino, came forward with their rape and drug allegations against the actor. Three years later, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court vacated Cosby’s sexual assault conviction because of a “non-prosecution” agreement the comedian made with the Montgomery County district attorney.
At the beginning of this year, Cosby was ordered to pay $500,000 for sexually assaulting Judy Huth at the Playboy Mansion when she was 16 in the ’70s.
This story originally appeared on Los Angeles Times.