Andrea Constand is my Mom’s massage therapist
It sounds a great deal like you ARE defending him. You’re bitching that this is a political move…but then say that “the number of accusers is impossible to ignore.” So…in YOUR opinion… should he face a trial for his alleged crimes? Or should it be dismissed as politics and the old man be allowed to skate?
Then please ask your mom to tell her she’s believed, and I (and others) having been defending her. Wish her luck with the trial.
You don’t seem to be able to comprehend that this situation got to the point it is at now because for such a long time the public gave him the benefit of the doubt and refused to believe that such acts could ever have been done by such a wholesome, family-man doctor. So don’t worry. I’m sure there are still a large number of people who can’t distinguish between TV and reality, and who still believe that he actually is a wholesome, family-man doctor in real life.
Usually the criminal case goes first and then the civil suits go through but its not required that it be in that order. It’s not double dipping per se; the criminal complaint seeks justice for society as a whole and the civil damages justice and compensation for the victim. They (civil actions linked to criminal complaints) are pretty much the norm these days. And I agree about there being some politics involved - both as you mean them and in another fashion; the politics of the original DA (?) who didn’t follow through on the case gets most of my blame.
I do think Cosby should have been prosecuted back in the 1970’s. Many of the reported allegations come from that time. He was a star then but not a huge star. That didn’t happen until the 80’s and the Cosby show. The alleged crimes should have been reported to police and Cosby held accountable soon after they happened. It might have prevented other women from being victims years later.
It doesn’t seem right to use these old unsubstantiated claims in this case. It’ll be interesting to see if any of these old claims are allowed into the trial. They make great tabloid material but it’s pretty hard to decide which people should be allowed to testify against Cosby.
imho This case should stand on its own merits. Focus on what Cosby allegedly did to this one victim. But, that’s up to the judge to decide.
So, you believe he should have been prosecuted back in the day, but but it should just be …forgotten? Ignored? Now that he is an old man, any rapes he committed should be <poof> gone?
Well, that’s why we have the statute of limitations. Requiring somebody to defend themselves against charges like this decades later is nearly impossible. Too much time has passed. Records lost. Memories have faded. There’s no physical evidence to sustain any of these old charges.
There is this one case that can be pursued. We’ll have to see how it works out.
Cosby isn’t skating by. His reputation is in ruins. A lifetime of good work and respect wiped out. This trial will cost him millions in attorney fees. Allegedly by his own criminal actions. He’s a pathetic shell of a man now.
Well, it’s not like he would have ever had any expectations of making big money by acting or selling his memoirs or anything else.
If he is acquitted, the only thing that will likely change is that he will likely have a million dollar legal bill.
But DA’s are very stubborn. If he is acquitted, I would expect the DA would quickly follow up with another charge. That may be why he was only charged in one of many of these crimes. If they charged him with a whole lot and he was acquitted, he couldn’t be charged with any of those same cases again. But if they put him into prison for one of the charges, they will have some time to follow up when he is in prison and I would guess he will face charge after charge until he dies in prison.
I feel no compassion for this man whatsoever.
Whatever you want to call it, forcibly doing sexual shit to women has to be one of the most creepy and cowardly acts and deserves big prison time. Doing that shit to children (I’m thinking of the Catholic priests) is equally bad and they deserve to be locked up as well.
Well, if it’s difficult for the defense, isn’t it equally difficult for the prosecution?
I think it’s an outrage that sexual abuse against children has a statute of limitations. After all, it usually takes ten years or so before a child grows up to the point where they will be prepared to even talk about it. And there are some similarities with adults. If someone is forcibly raped, it can take a very long time before they are prepared to tell anyone, even to admit it to themselves. I don’t think there should be any statute of limitations for sexual abuse.
As for your saying that “a lifetime of good work and respect wiped out” and “He’s a pathetic shell of a man now”, I don’t know about that at all.
Do you have any evidence to say that he is now a pathetic shell of a man? Or is that just your assumption? I would think there is a chance that he is such an egomaniac that he may believe he is above the law and will be able to use his supposed charm and fame to get out of this.
I don’t know that for sure. I’m just saying that if you don’t know for sure that he is a pathetic shell of a man, he could just as easily be an egomaniac who thinks he is above the law and feels he can scoff at the law.
I’d love to know if you have any evidence to say these things and if so, can you tell us what they are?
If they are just your opinions, that’s OK. But I’d just like to know which it is.
No offense. But these alleged acts are just so egregious that I think it’s important to know the truth.
So what? Most people have no reputation at all. It’s in no way an actual punishment. Trials aren’t supposed to be punishments, and it only costs him what he chooses to spend. No legal punishment still means he’s skating by.
The point is that you are calling doing the right thing some sort of political theater. Sure, it’s not much, but at least it’s something. The statute of limitations isn’t up.
You are defending him. You’re trying to argue that he’s been punished enough and that we shouldn’t keep trying. Despite the fact that he’s received no actual punishment at all.
The term “ultra vires” is a constitutional legal term meaning that some state or federal government is “out of bounds” (so to speak) when trying to make laws in a particular sphere of life.
In general, it’s something that only someone who has been trained in the law would know.
Would you mind if I ask if you are a lawyer? Specifically, a Constitutional Lawyer?
From Wikipedia:
“Ultra vires” is a Latin phrase meaning “beyond the powers”. If an act requires legal authority and it is done with such authority, it is characterised in law as intra vires (“within the powers”). If it is done without such authority, it is ultra vires. Acts that are intra vires may equivalently be termed “valid” and those that are ultra vires “invalid”.
With this trial, Cosby will officially become the funniest rapist of modern times.
Now would be a good time for you to rent/buy a food truck. And maybe fix up those two spare bedrooms…put in a coffee pot & a nice TV. Just sayin’.
If (and again if) all of that “good work” and respect was used to cover sexual predatory behavior, then it needs to be knocked down. Fortunately, there will be both civil and criminal trials, so I hope that the truth will come out.
I think the media is taking a solid anti-Cosby line now because they ignored all the stories for decades. In addition to Cosby the media is culpable by enabling him to continue this behavior without fear of repercussions.
I haven’t kept track of all the accusations, but this is one of the most recent, and possibly last one since the woman did go to the police, finally giving him reason to pause before raping again. Because of the statute of limitations this may be the last opportunity to have him face justice. I hope the prosecutors have a better case than they’ve indicated so far. But again, this is the fault of the media for not serving the public interests.
The civil case happened is 2005. That’s the one that was settled. They tried to do a criminal case but the DA of the time decided there wasn’t enough evidence.
I understand he slept with someone named “Russel”, that should be looked into.
Cosby’s attorney was on CBS this morning. She raised the same concerns about the politics behind this case that I did last night. I guess its good that his side of the story can finally come out at the trial. He’s been caught in a catch 22 all year. Denying specific allegations gets him sued for defaming his attacker. There’s already defamation civil suits because he spoke out. He’s filed numerous civil suits in return. These civil cases will be in the courts for many years to come. Maybe even after Cosby has passed away.
The Washington Post published a very good write up of the case so far.
Cosby can’t win, can he? Even if he’s proved - not just found - innocent then he’ll still be out all those legal fees.