Bill Cosby sexual assault case ends in mistrial

Bill Cosby’s sexual assault case has ended in a mistrial, with jurors reporting a hopeless deadlock over charges that the famous comedian drugged and violated a woman in 2004.

After deliberating since Monday, an increasingly weary panel told Judge Steven T O’Neill that they could not reach a consensus against the 79-year-old entertainer, who faced three counts.

The mistrial leaves a giant question mark hanging over the most intensely debated American sexual assault trial in recent memory.

Montgomery County prosecutors now have four months to declare if they will retry Cosby on the same charges. They must decide whether their case is strong enough to justify another high-profile trial, while the two alleged victims who testified against Cosby must determine their willingness to undergo another round of bruising cross-examination.

This was the only criminal trial Cosby has endured despite scores of accusations from nearly 60 women that he sexually assaulted or raped them, often with the aid of drugs.

As the prosecution weighs its choice, Cosby and those around him will waste no time touting weaknesses in the case. On Thursday, just after the first reports of deadlock, a spokesman for Cosby said it was a sign of the jury’s doubts.

“They’re conflicted about the inconsistencies in Ms. Constand’s testimony,” said the spokesman, Andrew Wyatt. “And they’re hearing Mr. C.’s testimony and he’s extremely truthful. And that’s created this doubt.”

If prosecutors call for another trial, Cosby is likely to remain free on bond.

The former Cosby Show star was charged with three counts of aggravated indecent assault, each carrying a possible 10-year prison sentence. Andrea Constand, a former friend and mentee of Cosby’s, accuses him of giving her pills that left her “frozen” and unable to resist as he fondled her and assaulted her with his fingers.

Constand first accused Cosby of sexually assault in 2005, alleging that the assault had taken place the year before. But it would take a series of broad shifts – in the public’s perception of Cosby and his many accusers, and in the makeup of the prosecutor’s office – before he was charged with a crime, more than 11 years later.

By that time, Constand had sued Cosby in civil court, where he admitted in a deposition to using quaaludes in order to obtain sex, consensually, from young women, before settling out of court for an undisclosed amount.

That deposition was among several key pieces of testimony that the jury asked to revisit as it struggled to reach a verdict.

The 12-member jury had deliberated since Monday with several breaks to revisit key testimony. On Thursday, just before noon, they reported to the judge that they had reached an impasse. O’Neill asked them to try again to reach a verdict, which under Pennsylvania law must be unanimous.