Judge says he ‘has no bias,’ will move forward with actor Bill Cosby sentencing hearing
NORRISTOWN » A Montgomery County judge said he “has no bias” and can move forward in an impartial manner next week when he must sentence entertainer Bill Cosby on charges he sexually assaulted a woman at his Cheltenham mansion in 2004.
“This court is confident that it has and can continue to assess this case in an impartial manner, free of personal bias or interest in the outcome. This court simply has no bias against any witness called by the defense or the defendant himself,” Judge Steven T. O’Neill wrote in an order Wednesday, denying Cosby’s request that he recuse himself from the case.
“This court finds no merit in any of the bases alleged by the defendant and the court will not recuse itself,” O’Neill added in a strongly worded response.
Cosby’s sentencing hearing, expected to play out over several days, is set to commence on Sept. 24.
Cosby, 81, faces a possible maximum sentence of 15 to 30 years in prison on three counts of aggravated indecent assault of which the jury convicted him in April in connection with sexually assaulting Andrea Constand, a former Temple University athletic department employee, after plying her with “three blue pills,” at his Cheltenham mansion in January 2004.
Last week, Cosby, through his lawyer, asked O’Neill to recuse himself from the sentencing hearing.
Cosby’s lawyers maintained O’Neill had a longstanding feud with onetime former District Attorney Bruce L. Castor Jr., stemming from their 1999 battle for the GOP nomination for district attorney, which was secured by Castor, that called into question O’Neill’s Feb. 4, 2016, ruling rejecting Cosby’s against Mr. Castor,” defense lawyer Joseph P. Green Jr. wrote in court papers filed last week.
Green, who is being assisted by Ardmore lawyer Peter Goldberger argued that throughout his terms on the bench, O’Neill’s relationship with Castor, serving as district attorney and later as a county commissioner, has remained “hostile and acrimonious.”
Calls made by Cosby’s previous lawyers for O’Neill to recuse himself were previously denied.
Green suggested O’Neill should reconsider recusing himself as he is now being asked to serve as the factfinder at Cosby’s sentencing hearing.
Cosby’s wife, Camille, also issued a statement calling on O’Neill to “provide a full accounting of his bias against” Castor “and correct the horrible injustice done to Mr. Cosby and to our system of justice.” The actor’s wife also traveled to Harrisburg on Monday and filed a complaint with Pennsylvania’s Judicial Conduct Board.
In his response on Wednesday, O’Neill said he “undertook conscientious reflection on claims raised in the (defense) motion.”
“Throughout the pendency of his matter, and in very matter over which this court presides, this court is sensitive to its obligations under the Code of Judicial Conduct, and takes these obligations very seriously,” O’Neill wrote.
District Attorney Kevin R. Steele characterized Cosby’s latest recusal request as “desperate.”
“This defense filing is simply a desperate, 11th-hour attempt by Cosby’s current set of attorneys to stop the sentencing of a convicted felon for his crimes,” Steele said last week.
During a Feb. 2, 2016, hearing at which Cosby’s lawyers sought a dismissal of the charges, Castor, district attorney from 2000 to 2008, claimed he made a binding promise to Cosby and his then lawyer in 2005 that Cosby would never be prosecuted in connection with Constand’s allegations. Stopping short of calling his decision an “agreement,” Castor claimed he alone as a “sovereign” entity had the authority to make a binding decision. Castor testified, “Mr. Cosby was not getting prosecuted ever, as far as I was concerned.”
In a carefully worded order on Feb. 4, 2016, O’Neill said he based his decision not to dismiss charges against Cosby on the arguments of lawyers and the testimony of witnesses during the hearing, indicating “a credibility determination” also was “an inherent part” of his decision.
O’Neill has allowed Cosby to remain free on bail, 10 percent of $1 million, to await sentencing. The entertainer must wear an electronic monitoring device while he remains free. Cosby cannot leave the state without approval of the judge.