Bill Cosby Doesn’t Deserve a ‘Get out of Jail Free Card’
Recently, Civil Rights leader, Rev. Jesse Jackson, pleaded for Bill Cosby, a convicted sexual predator, to be released from a Pennsylvania prison to avoid possible exposure to COVID-19. Jackson’s argument to the Philadelphia Tribune was based on the premise that he won’t hurt anyone due to his age and visual impairment, but we can’t lose sight of the victims of Cosby’s crimes.
In an interview, Jackson stated, “He’s 84 and blind. Who’s he going to hurt?” I believe instead we should be asking, “What about all the women he already hurt?” Let’s not forget them.
Cosby might be 84, but in 2018 he was convicted of sexually assaulting Andrea Constand and he is accused of sexually assaulting or raping 60 other women. With all of these victims, should we accept the argument that an 84-year-old man should be granted the right to step back into his privileged, celebrity lifestyle to avoid potential exposure to COVID-19? No!
As a victim of one of America’s worst serial rapists, Jeffrey Marsalis, I can speak from experience. Marsalis shares much in common with Bill Cosby, including his proclivity for drugging and raping his victims, two high-profile Philadelphia-based trials, and a current appeal based on a legal technicality that fails to consider his victims and instead focuses on a legal system that all too often fails victims.
Following the #metoo movement, I had hoped society would focus more on the victims and consider the ways in which their lives have been irreparably harmed. Similar to Constand, I was drugged and raped in 2003 by Jeffrey Marsalis, known as the Match.com rapist, and I faced an uphill battle to not only bring him to justice but to move forward with my life. Regardless of my rapist’s age or his COVID-risk factors, I can’t erase what this man did to me, and neither can Cosby’s victims.
To be abundantly clear, a Philadelphia jury convicted Marsalis on a count of sexual assault for what he did to me. Similar to Constand’s case, jurors wrestled with their preconceived biases about rape and chose the lesser charge of sexual assault, which at the time of my 2007 conviction included the potential for no jail time or up to 10 years in jail. The decision to sentence my rapist, a man the court deemed a sexually violent predator under Megan’s Law, was left at the sole discretion of the judge. Fortunately, at sentencing the judge decided to give Marsalis the maximum sentence permitted by law. He is currently serving his sentence at a Pennsylvania state penitentiary for what he did to me and to countless other women. Based on this sicko’s own record keeping, the FBI was able to secure a file with the first names and dates of over 60 women that covered only a two and half year period. We know there were victims before he started this list and after the FBI seized it in a raid. Thus, I can speak with some authority on being both the victim of a serial rapist and what it’s like years later to consider the possibility that my rapist could be released back into society based on a health issue or a legal decision made at his trial.
In addition to Jackson’s plea for release, Cosby also has an appeal being considered by the PA Supreme Court to determine whether the court should have heard from other victims, also known as prior bad acts. In a similar manner, my rapist, also convicted of rape in Idaho in 2009, has appealed his Idaho conviction, which carries a 30 year to life sentence. Marsalis’ appeal was heard by the Idaho Supreme Court, which granted his appeal for ineffective counsel for a case tried over a decade ago. According to the Idaho Mountain Gazette, this ineffective claim is based on “failing to challenge the state’s expert witness, failing to present an expert witness to discuss the scientific basis behind Marsalis’s blackout defense, failing to present favorable eyewitness testimony at trial and failing to properly advise him of his speedy trial rights.” Within in this legal mumbo jumbo, we completely lose sight of the victim. In this case, we can’t overlook the rights of a serial rapist, convicted in multiple states and deemed by the court a sexually violent predator. He is still entitled to his rights; just as Cosby apparently has not only the right to appeal his conviction, but also to have activists contend that he should be released to avoid health risks. Who was worried about our health after the crime?
There are victims in these cases, and it’s easy to forget this once the trial is over, but it’s something that victims can’t ever forget. And, neither should you.
It seems trite to write that rape and sexual assault are not victimless crimes because in many ways they are the most personal crimes committed against another human being. Yet, these crime victims are often the least understood and the most easily forgotten.
osby doesn’t deserve a “Get out of Jail Free Card” because of his age or eye sight. I stand with Cosby’s survivors in writing don’t forget the victims.
(Note: Media often uses the term survivor, but in this case, I’m intentionally using the term victim to focus on the severity of the crime.)