No Bill Cosby verdict after fourth day of deliberations, jury remains deadlocked
— -- The jurors in the Bill Cosby sexual assault trial remain deadlocked after being dismissed Thursday evening, ending their fourth day of deliberations.
At 9 p.m., Judge O’Neill called in the jury and dismissed them for the night, though they remained in deliberations -– which will resume Friday at 9 a.m.
"I have no intention of intruding upon your deliberations," Judge O'Neill said. "I am making the assumption that in keeping with our last instruction that you are deliberating in accordance with that instruction. If you need anything further, you will let me know. But today you must be very tired. I know how difficult this must be for you, but I would reiterate how proud I am ... You have shown such fidelity to the cautionary instructions and thereby the oath you took as jurors. It’s being tested, this is difficult work ... I thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything you’ve done."
A representative for Bill Cosby had called for the judge in the comedian's criminal trial to put an end to jury deliberations.
For about 40 hours, the 12 jurors have remained deadlocked on a verdict and this morning were ordered by the judge to continue trying to reach a verdict.
The jurors have been deliberating since Monday. The comedian is accused of sexually assaulting Andrea Constand in 2004.
"We can only imagine the emotional and physical toll this has taken on the jurors," Andrew Wyatt told reporters on Thursday evening. "All we're asking is to put an end to it right now."
Cosby has been charged with three counts of aggravated indecent assault, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, with no minimum, and a $25,000 fine. The charges stem from a 2004 sexual encounter with Constand.
She claims that he drugged and molested her, but the former television star said in a decade-old deposition that their relations were consensual and that he gave her a Benadryl only to help her relax.
If convicted, Cosby will be required to register as a sex offender.
The former "Cosby Show" star, 79, pleaded not guilty and has repeatedly denied allegations of wrongdoing.
Since the prosecution and defense teams rested their cases on Friday and Monday, respectively, the jury, which consists of seven men and five women, has spent more than 24 hours going over the details of the case.
On Monday the jurors requested the "full context" of quotes Cosby gave in a deposition from 2005 and 2006, in which he called the pills he gave Constand "friends."
The next day, they asked for clarification of the phrase "without her knowledge" in count three, which pertains to whether Cosby administered "drugs, intoxicants or other means for the purpose of preventing resistance" without Constand's knowledge.
The jurors requested a read-back of Constand's initial report to police in 2005. On Wednesday they reviewed her testimony from the week before about the night of the alleged attack and also requested read-backs of police testimony about Cosby's 2005 interview with police.
