Comic confronted by topless protester
NORRISTOWN, Pa. — A topless protester who appeared on several episodes of “The Cosby Show” as a child jumped a barricade and got within a few feet of Bill Cosby on Monday as the comedian entered a suburban Philadelphia courthouse for the start of his sexual assault retrial.
The woman, whose body was scrawled with the names of more than 50 Cosby accusers as well as the words “Women’s Lives Matter,” 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 protester, Nicolle Rochelle, 39, of Little Falls, N.J., was charged with disorderly conduct and released.
“The main goal was to make Cosby uncomfortable because that is exactly what he has been doing for decades to women and to show him that the body can be aggressive and empowered,” she said afterward.
Rochelle, an actress, said she didn’t have any bad experiences with Cosby when she was on the show, nor did she intend to physically hurt him. She is a member of the European feminist group Femen, which is known for staging topless protests around the world.
Cosby spokesman Andrew Wyatt praised deputies for their quick action but urged court officials to increase security.
“It’s a different world. Things have changed,” Wyatt said, referring to recent mass shootings and other episodes. “You never know who’s going to want to make a name for themselves.”
The disruption came ahead of opening statements, when jurors learned that Cosby paid nearly $3.4 million to the woman he is charged with sexually assaulting.
District Attorney Kevin Steele highlighted the 2006 civil settlement during his statement, in an apparent attempt to suggest Cosby wouldn’t have paid out so much money if the accusations against him were false. Cosby’s lawyers have signaled they intend to seize on the settlement to argue that Andrea Constand falsely accused the former TV star in hopes of landing a big payoff.
The amount had been confidential — and was kept out of the first trial — but a judge ruled that both sides could discuss it at this one.
“This case is about trust,” Steele told the jury. “This case is about betrayal and that betrayal leading to the sexual assault of a woman named Andrea Constand.”
Cosby, 80, is charged with drugging and molesting Constand at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004.
Cosby’s first trial last spring ended with the jury hopelessly deadlocked. The comedian faces three counts of aggravated indecent assault, each punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
“The make main Cosby goal uncomfortable was to because that is exactly what he has been doing for decades to women ... ” Nicolle Rochelle, topless protester