Saturday 3 July 2021

Worrying Aspects Of Cosby Release

You would think that the Bill Cosby case was simple enough, he drugged women and then sexually assaulted them so lock him up and let him rot so i am a bit perplexed about the 'technicality' which has seen him released back into society.
From what i can understand, it stems from 2005 when Police were investigating a claim of sexual assault against Crosby and agreed that they wouldn't prosecute him if he confessed to the assault, which he did and paid the victim $3.4 million in some sort of 'sorry about the drugging and raping you' gesture.
Following the case, over 60 other women came forward speaking about the sexual abuse they allegedly endured at the hands of the actor and Cosby was arrested, charged and found guilty on counts of drugging, sexual misconduct, rape, child sexual abuse, and battery and was handed an ten year prison sentence.
Two years later, Cosby is free as the Pennsylvania Supreme Court decided that evidence from the 2005 case was used in his conviction and as he had confessed free from the danger of being prosecuted, there had been a 'violation of Cosby’s due process rights' and released.
In a further blow to all the women he drugged and raped, they cannot simply retry the case without the 2005 evidence because the Court said that 'any future prosecution on these particular charges must be barred' as 'it is important that the constitutional rights of the people are vindicated'.
Why the Police gave a serial sexual offender a 'get out of Jail free' back in 2005 with an agreement if he admits to it he won't get prison time is worrying enough but now a dangerous predator is back in society 'on a technicality' but most concerning is the negative impact it will have on those who have been sexually abused and those who will be in the future who must look at this and wonder if it will be worth reporting it as the police and courts won't support them.

1 comment:

Liber - Latin for "The Free One" said...

in the US, like the UK, we think it better for a guilty person to be free than an innocent person to be jailed.

so, our laws put all the burden on the state to follow legal processes (since, before we established our own laws, the prior leadership cared nothing for due process).

it seems the DA in 2005 did not think he/she could win the criminal case against Crosby (who it seems to everyone in the US, except his wife, is guilty as hell). so, granted criminal immunity in exchange for information related to the civil case.

then he was prosecuted using that data in 2018 by a different DA. a no no...

OJ is another that was guilty as hell and got off due to the actions of the police... much evidence was disallowed