Bill Cosby’s legal team prepares his appeal and wheels 348-pages of paperwork to court
The former television star who was disgraced when he was convicted of sexual assault is preparing for a huge appeal effort that he hopes will exonerate him
Bill Cosby, the former television star who was disgraced when he was convicted of sexual assault is preparing for a huge appeal effort that he hopes will exonerate him
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Bill Cosby’s legal team is gearing up for a court battle to appeal his sexual assault conviction.
On Tuesday, some 348 pages of appeal paperwork was wheeled in to Pennsylvania Superior Court in tubs and the embattled comedian took to Twitter (via his rep) to give thanks to his army of supporters who have remained steadfast in his corner as he serves his prison sentence.
“This is a beautiful day and it’s delicious. You’re seeing it as it was described to me by Mrs. Cosby — a photo showing the ‘Wheels Of Justice’ delivering my appeal to the Superior Court of Pennsylvania,” Cosby said, along with a photo. “Thank you to my millions of supporters (the freedom fighters)…”
Cosby’s team will argue that he wasn’t given due process as evidenced by testimony from five other alleged victims that they claim was irrelevant to the case, NBC Philadelphia reports.
Cosby’s lawyers maintain that the testimony allowed from the other women they considered “bad act witnesses” were “strikingly dissimilar” to Andrea Constand’s 2004 encounter with Cosby and should not have been allowed. The defense team claimed the testimony was “too remote in time and too dissimilar to the Constand allegations.”
They said juror 11 had already determined that Cosby was guilty before the trial.
Cosby was ultimately convicted of drugging and sexually assaulting Constand in April 2018.
The appeal, Cosby’s spokesman Andrew Wyatt said is an “important step” in ensuring that Cosby gets a “fair trial.”
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“On this date, one of our Great American Treasures [Bill Cosby]…was finally awarded the opportunity to file his appeal with the Superior Court of Pennsylvania. This filing is an important step in ensuring that Mr. Cosby receives a hearing from a fair and impartial court. The Constitution guarantees that right to Mr. Cosby—and to all Americans—and he looks forward to securing justice in the court of appeal,” he said.
According to the outlet, Pennsylvania Judge Steven O’Neill wrote in a post-trial memo that the testimony from the women displayed “chilling similarities” that pointed to a “signature” crime.