No charge for Bill Cosby over sex claim from girl at Playboy Mansion
PUBLISHED : Wednesday, 17 December, 2014, 9:22pm
UPDATED : Wednesday, 17 December, 2014, 9:22pm
Agence France-Presse in Los Angeles
Veteran comic Bill Cosby.
US prosecutors have declined to charge Bill Cosby over allegations he sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl at the Playboy Mansion in 1974, in a rare piece of good news for the veteran comic.
About 20 women have accused the 77-year-old Emmy and Golden Globe winner of sexual assault or rape in alleged incidents dating mostly from decades ago, but so far only former Playboy hostess Judy Huth has taken legal action.
Prosecutors cited the statute of limitations - which limits how long legal action can be taken after an alleged crime - in declining to pursue the case brought by Huth earlier this month.
"Given that 40 years have passed since the alleged incident, prosecution (on a misdemeanor count) ... is declined due to the expiration of the statute of limitations," wrote Deputy District Attorney Victor Rodriguez.
"Even if there was an applicable ... charge, the statute of limitations that existed in 1974 for felony sex crimes was three years. Therefore prosecution today for any potential felony sex crime from 1974 would also be barred."
In her lawsuit, Huth said she and a friend met Cosby on the Californian set of a film.
She said the actor invited them to his tennis club, where he allegedly gave them alcohol and played billiards before taking them to Hugh Hefner's infamous Playboy Mansion.
At one point Cosby allegedly directed her to a lavatory within a bedroom suite.
"When (Huth) emerged from the bathroom, she found Cosby sitting on the bed. He asked her to sit beside him," said the lawsuit, which detailed the sex assault accusations against Cosby.
Cosby's wife Camille Cosby this week lashed out at media reporting on the claims against her husband, saying he was the victim of unfounded accusations.
"There appears to be no vetting of [his] accusers before stories are published," she said.
