Bill Cosby is free again. The highest court in the US state of Pennsylvania overturned the 83-year-old’s conviction for sexual assault. Due to an agreement with a public prosecutor who previously dealt with the case, Cosby should not have been charged in this matter – the court argued in an 80-page statement. The entertainer left prison on Wednesday. His case must not be reopened.
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The decision of the highest court in Pennsylvania surprised many in the United States – and caused shock and perplexity, but also relief. An overview of the reactions.
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“AT LAST!!!! A terrible injustice will be redressed – a miscarriage of justice will be corrected, ”wrote Phylicia Rashad on Instagram. She played his wife on “The Cosby Show”.
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“I’m so angry about this news,” wrote the actress and activist Amber Tamblyn on Twitter. “I personally know women who were knocked unconscious and raped by this man using drugs. Shame on the court and this decision. “
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“Mr. Cosby should never have been prosecuted for these offenses,” said Cosby’s appeals attorney Jennifer Bonjean in an interview. “Prosecutors cannot change that simply because of their political motivations.”
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“Today’s majority decision on Bill Cosby is not only disappointing but also cause for concern,” wrote Andrea Constand in a joint statement with their legal team. She had accused Cosby of abuse. The decision could help victims of sexual violence to refrain from taking legal action against the perpetrator.
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“I know many young women and men who are so afraid to report their rapist,” wrote the actress and #Metoo activist Rosanna Arquette on Twitter. “I am devastated today after hearing the news of Cosby’s release. That is disgusting.”
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»When will things finally change for the better for women and girls when it comes to sexual assault, sexism, misogyny and age discrimination? What will it take? ”Wrote the actress Kathy Griffin on Twitter. She is so discouraged.
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“My heart aches and rage for every woman who has been sexually abused by Bill Cosby today,” the actress wrote Debra Messing on Twitter. “It’s terrible.”
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Cosby was once considered a superstar and America’s model father, then became the first famous convict of the #MeToo era, the global movement against sexual harassment. More than 60 women had accused him of various kinds of sexual assault. In the process, however, there was only one case from 2004. The jury saw it as proven that Cosby had made a woman helpless with pills and then sexually coerced. The entertainer had always denied the allegations.
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In 2018 Cosby was sentenced to a minimum of three and a maximum of ten years imprisonment for sexual assault. Since September 2018 he sat as inmate “NN7687” in the institution “SCI Phoenix” in Pennsylvania. After his release on Wednesday, he turned to the public via Twitter and thanked his “fans, supporters and friends who stood by my side during this ordeal.” And especially at the highest court in Pennsylvania.
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Cosby’s attorney Jennifer Bonjean said at an impromptu press conference at Cosby’s property: “He is extremely happy to be at home and looks forward to being with his wife and children.” Another of his attorneys referred to his client’s time in the Prison as “an unwanted three-year vacation that Mr. Cosby had never asked for.”
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