Topless protester charges at Cosby as retrial begins
The unidentified woman with ‘ Women’s Lives Matter’ written on her body jumped a barricade and ran in front of Cosby
Norristown: A topless protester with “Women’s Lives Matter” written on her body jumped a barricade and got within a few feet of Bill Cosby on Monday as the comedian walked into a suburban Philadelphia courthouse for the start of his sexual assault retrial.
The unidentified woman ran in front of Cosby toward a bank of TV cameras but was intercepted by sheriff ’ s deputies and led away in handcuffs.
Cosby seemed startled by the commotion as a half- dozen protesters chanted at him. The disruption came ahead of opening statements Monday, though a delay was expected while the judge sorted through allegations raised late Friday that a juror was overheard saying he thought Cosby was guilty. His lawyers asked that the man be questioned and removed from the case.
Prosecutors have lined up a parade of accusers to make the case that the man revered as America’s Dad lived a double life as one of Hollywood’s biggest predators.
He is fighting back with a new, high- profile lawyer and an aggressive strategy: attacking Andrea Constand as a greedy liar and casting the other women testifying as bandwagon accusers looking for a share of the spotlight. “You’ve seen previews and coming attractions, but things have changed,” said professor Laurie Levenson of Loyola Law School in Los Angeles. Cosby’s first trial last spring ended in a cliffhanger, with jurors unable to reach a unanimous verdict after five days of tense deliberations on charges that the man who made millions of viewers laugh.