Bill Cosby’s Fate is Decided

Miguel Lemus, Staff Writer|Apr 30, 2018

After a long awaited trial, Cosby was sentenced to ten years in prison.

Since the late 1990s, Bill Cosby has made his name in Hollywood for his role in “The Cosby Show” and his work as a stand-up comedian. However, what was once admiration for Cosby’s work turned into disappointment when almost 50 women spoke out against Cosby, detailing their experiences of sexual assault throughout his time in the industry. Cosby’s fate was finally sealed on April 26 when he was found guilty on three counts of aggravated indecent assault against Andrea Constand and sentenced to 10 years in a state prison.

Despite the dozens of women that spoke out against Cosby, Constand was the only one who pressed charges. Constand met Cosby in 2002 when she was working at Temple University, where they developed their strong friendship. Constand viewed Cosby as a mentor until one night when he encouraged her to take a few pills, which paralyzed her and then proceeded to assault her.

“Andrea Constand had no proof of the assault. With no evidence of the incident, her testimony and legitimacy were doubtful… The message being spread is: ‘women are standing up and voicing their testimonies,’ but without the facts, these accusations become flimsy and untrustworthy,” sophomore Katherine Saladrigas said.

Constand reported the assault in 2005 but did not file charges against Cosby until 2015, leading to a 2017 trial. In this first trial, Judge Steven T. O’Neil allowed the prosecution to provide a testimony of women who had experienced situations similar to Constand’s. Due to the large gap in time, evidence was lost and stories became inconsistent. This resulted in a mistrial as the jury remained hung, feeling that due to lack of sufficient evidence they would be unable to reach a reasonable verdict.

“I feel like this trial should’ve occurred ages ago due to the fact that so many women spoke out against Cosby’s sexual assault. However, it’s nice to see that Constand is standing up for all of those who have been affected by Cosby’s actions,” junior Victor Hernandez said.

In this 2018 case, Judge O’Neill allowed five women that underwent the same experiences as Constand to testify. Many believed that Cosby would not be sentenced to prison due to his old age, celebrity status, defense team and state of blindness. However, the jury ruled in favor of the prosecution, a moment MeToo supporters are calling a step forward for justice and solidarity among women.