Bill Cosby Tries to Get Criminal Case Dropped as Wife Forced to Continue Deposition
— -- Camille Cosby will have to endure more questions about her husband’s alleged conduct.
A Massachusetts judge today rejected her request to terminate her deposition in a defamation case brought by seven women who have accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault.
Meanwhile, the comedian is trying to get the criminal case against him -- alleging that he sexually assaulted Andrea Constand in 2004 -- thrown out. Bill Cosby's team has filed an appeal arguing that the former district attorney guaranteed in 2005 he would not prosecute in exchange for Cosby’s testimony in a related civil case.
A lower court ruled against Cosby in February and the team is now appealing to a higher court.
Camille Cosby will return Monday for a second round of questions. She had asked to stop the deposition because, her attorneys said, she was subjected to a “litany of improper and offensive questions” during the first session this past February that they contended were only meant “to annoy, embarrass and oppress her.”
She was particularly irked by questions about her own sexual relations, her political commentary and about the 1997 death of the her son, Ennis. The judge agreed to limit the scope of the questions this time around and Cosby’s attorneys said they were “gratified by the court’s decision.”
"While not agreeing to terminate the deposition, the court granted Mrs. Cosby's request to limit the types of questions she could be asked going forward, prohibiting plaintiffs from asking improper questions, questions seeking her opinion, and questions involving marital communications," her attorneys said in a statement.
In February, Camille Cosby testified for two-and-a-half hours at the Springfield Marriott in Massachusetts, according to Joseph Cammarata, a lawyer for the women suing Bill Cosby.
Cammarata said that Camille Cosby’s lawyers invoked spousal privilege not to answer questions more than a dozen times in the earlier deposition.
Bill Cosby's legal team has repeatedly denied the sexual allegations against him.
His lawyers also said that he will be "exonerated by a court of law" in the criminal case.
"The charge by the Montgomery County District Attorney's office came as no surprise, filed 12 years after the alleged incident and coming on the heels of a hotly contested election for this county's DA during which this case was made the focal point," his legal team said in an earlier statement. "Make no mistake, we intend to mount a vigorous defense against this unjustified charge and we expect that Mr. Cosby will be exonerated by a court of law."
