Bill Cosby will 'plead the Fifth' in a civil lawsuit alleging he assaulted a girl, 15, at the Playboy Mansion in 1974
Bill Cosby will plead the Fifth Amendment in a civil lawsuit alleging he sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl at the Playboy Mansion in 1974, according to his lawyer.
An attorney for the 84-year-old comedian told a Los Angeles Superior Court judge Wednesday that he will invoke his right to remain silent amid fears he could be prosecuted again.
Judy Huth alleges Cosby plied her and a friend with pills and alcohol at Hugh Hefner's Playboy Mansion in California when she was 15, before sexually assaulting her.
She sued Cosby in civil court in 2014 but the case was put on hold in 2016 amid the criminal case against the comedian.
Huth is one of at least 60 women who have accused the disgraced comedian of sexual assault and misconduct over the years but, due to the statute of limitations expiring in many cases, Cosby was only ever convicted of assaulting one woman.
He was sentenced in 2018 to three to 10 years for drugging and sexually assaulting Temple University sports administrator Andrea Constand at his home in Pennsylvania in 2004.
However, his conviction was overturned in a stunning ruling in June after Pennsylvania's highest court found that the prosecutor who brought the case was bound by his predecessor's promise not to prosecute Cosby.
The court found that the promise not to charge him led Cosby to incriminate himself in testimony that was later used to put him away.
Bill Cosby returning to his home in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania on June 30 - the day he walked free from prison. Cosby will now plead the Fifth in a civil lawsuit alleging he sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl at the Playboy Mansion in 1974, according to his lawyer
Judy Huth and Bill Cosby together in an undated image. Huth alleges Cosby plied her and a friend with pills and alcohol at Hugh Hefner's Playboy Mansion in California when she was 15, before sexually assaulting her
Cosby's attorney Michael Freedman said in a status conference report made public Wednesday, and seen by the Hollywood Reporter, that Cosby will not risk putting himself in that position again when it comes to Huth's civil case.
'Defendant does not agree that merely because the Pennsylvania Supreme Court vacated Defendant's criminal conviction for a single offense, allegedly arising from an incident that occurred in 2004, Defendant no longer enjoys a Fifth Amendment right to remain silent,' said Freedman.
'This is particularly so where numerous states have no criminal statutes of limitations for sex crimes.
'It is well-settled that the Fifth Amendment protects both the innocent and the guilty.'
He said that after 'an unlawful three-year incarceration', Cosby will be invoking his right not to answer questions if he is called to give testimony in the suit.
'Having already been forced to face a malicious criminal prosecution that resulted in an unlawful three-year incarceration, Defendant is not confident that such a risk does not still exist in this jurisdiction and others,' he said.
Freedman also said LA authorities had said the criminal investigation into Huth's complaint is still open.
Hugh Hefner and Bill Cosby pictured in an undated photo. Huth sued Cosby in civil court in 2014 but the case was put on hold in 2016 amid the criminal case against the comedian
The Playboy Mansion in California where the alleged sexual assault took place in 1974
'Indeed, prior to a stay being entered in this case, LAPD claimed that the Huth matter is an open criminal investigation,' he said.
'Thus, Defendant anticipates that if he is forced to sit for a deposition, he will exercise his Fifth Amendment guarantees absent a court order ruling that he has no Fifth Amendment right in this jurisdiction or any others.'
Huth is one of 60 women who have accused Cosby over the years
The attorney also vowed to challenge a change in California civil law last year that abolished the statute of limitations for child sex assault claims.
In January 2020, California gave childhood sexual assault survivors up until their 40th birthday or within five years of the discovery of the abuse to file a civil lawsuit.
The change in law also gives victims a three-year window to file claims that could not be filed under previous laws.
Huth was a minor at the time of the alleged assault, making her potentially eligible for this three-year window.
Cosby's attorney argued that the new law could be unconstitutional and the suit legally out of bounds.
Cosby was ordered to sit for a deposition in the Huth case back when it was filed but refused to answer questions that time.
Huth's attorney Gloria Allred said last month that, now he is no longer facing criminal charges, he cannot invoke the Fifth during a second deposition in the suit.
Cosby's attorney told a Los Angeles Superior Court judge Wednesday that he will invoke his right to remain silent amid fears he could be prosecuted again
'Because the criminal case was pending, the taking of the second deposition was stayed,' Allred told USA Today.
'Now we will be able to take the deposition and he won't be able to invoke his Fifth Amendment rights because there are no criminal charges pending against him.
'There are many questions I want to ask him. He will be compelled to answer them.'
Allred, who represents 33 of Cosby's accusers, has vowed to fight for justice in civil court.
Cosby has always maintained he is innocent on all allegations of sexual misconduct.