Bill Cosby Dismisses Case Against Beverly Johnson — Sort Of
Bill Cosby has been dealing with a lot of legal issues lately. From a civil suit in Massachusetts (a case in which his wife, Camille Cosby, was just deposed this week) to a serious criminal case in Pennsylvania, as well as a handful of other pending lawsuits, all related to the sexual misconduct accusations levied against Cosby by dozens of women. This is why, according the Bill Cosby’s legal team, the comedian has decided that now isn’t the time to pursue his defamation suit against sexual assault accuser Beverly Johnson.
The Wrap reports that Bill Cosby, by way of his lawyers, has filed legal documents pleading for a dismissal of his defamation suit against the model. However, Cosby wants the door left open to pursue the case again when he is more capable of focusing on it, so his legal team is asking the judge to dismiss the case against Johnson without prejudice. This would allow him to pick up where he left off in the future.
According to lawyers for Bill Cosby, the case has been “voluntarily dismissed” by their client so that he can focus solely and properly on the criminal case currently underway against him in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Lawyers for Cosby claim that his obligations to the criminal case would impede his ability to “fully participate” in the civil case against Johnson.
A spokesman for Bill Cosby’s lawyer said that the legal team “fully expects” to re-file the case against Beverly Johnson before the statute of limitation expires.
Bill Cosby’s case against the model stems from allegations of sexual assault she made against the comedian. Allegations that came amid a veritable squall of other accusations and allegations against Cosby. According to Johnson, who told her Cosby story to Vanity Fair in December of 2014, Bill Cosby drugged her in the mid-1980s following a dinner at his home. She said that she realized what was going on, repeatedly called him a “mother****er,” and he ultimately threw her out of his house.
The incident occurred, according to Johnson, who was the first black Vogue cover model, after the peak of her career as a supermodel in the 1970s, at a point when she was trying to break into acting.
Bill Cosby filed a defamation suit against Johnson in December, 2015, insisting that her claims against him were false. Cosby accused her of attempting to “thrust herself back into the spotlight and attempt to revive her flagging career” by way of her false allegations against him.
“I am aware of the statements from Bill Cosby. In cases of rape and abuse, abusers will do whatever they can to intimidate and weaken their victims to force them to stop fighting,” she said. “I ask for your support of all of the victims involved. Thank you.”
Despite filing (and then dismissing) a defamation lawsuit against Beverly Johnson, Bill Cosby has been the target of similar litigation himself, stemming from the dozens of sexual assault charges that have been levied against him in recent years. The Massachusetts case against Bill Cosby was brought against him by several of his alleged victims, who say Cosby defamed them by calling them “liars” when they made sexual assault allegations against him.
Bill Cosby is also facing a very serious criminal charge in Pennsylvania. That charge stemmed from sexual misconduct allegations brought against the comedian by Andrea Constand. She sued Cosby, but the pair later settled out of court. Information discovered during her lawsuit is now being used by the current DA to pursue criminal charges against Bill Cosby. It is possible that any discovery obtained during the current Massachusetts case against Cosby, including his wife’s deposition, could also be used against him in criminal proceedings.
Despite the dozens of women who have accused Cosby of sexual misconduct and druggings, he has steadfastly denied all allegations against him. Is some instances, such as the Beverly Johnson case, Bill Cosby has even filed suits against those making claims against him.
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