Bill Cosby was charged with sexual assault on Wednesday in Pennsylvania, according to the New York Times. The criminal charges against Cosby began with Andrea Constand, a woman who accused him of drugging and sexually abusing her in his home in a Philadelphia suburb in 2004.
According to Constand, she went to his home as a friend and he urged her to drink wine and take pills until she couldn't move, at which time he sexually assaulted her.
This case was reopened due to evidence that emerged in July, including a deposition from a civil suit filed by Constand in which Cosby acknowledged he had given women the drug quaaludes—a sedative—when he was trying to have sex with them.
The New York Times reports that investigators cited Cosby's "conflicting identifications of the drug" as a major factor for the charges filed on Wednesday, meaning he gave different answers about what exactly the drug was to different people. According to Constand, Cosby told her the drug was herbal when he gave it to her, but he told the police it was Benadryl. He told Constand's mother that he couldn't remember what the drug was.
These charges are the latest in Cosby's saga. In the last year, dozens of women publically accused Cosby of sexual assault. It's pretty clear that Bill Cosby is a rapist. But despite the huge number of accusations, many still think Cosby will never actually do prison time due to his wealth and fame, as well as the support of a system that makes it extremely difficult to prosecute rape. And Cosby's decided to go on the offensive as well—Earlier this month, Cosby filed a lawsuit against 7 of the women who accused him of sexual assault for public defamation of character. He also filed a suit against another accuser, former supermodel Beverly Johnson, for defamation of character as well.
