Bill Cosby denies charges against accusers

[jeaniebueller]

Did we discuss this already?.

www.nytimes.com/2015/12/15/arts/bill-cosby-files-defamation-suit-against-women-who-accused-him.html?_r=0

Demonstrating that he is still prepared to fight, Bill Cosby struck back on Monday against seven of the women who have accused him of sexual assault and defamation by, in turn, suing them for defamation and denying their allegations.

The filing, in federal court in Massachusetts, seemed to signal a new aggressiveness on the part of Mr. Cosby, who had kept a low profile for months as dozens of women came forward, accusing him of sexual misconduct and assault.

The papers, submitted in response to the defamation suit the seven women filed, accuse them of “malicious, opportunistic and false and defamatory accusations of sexual misconduct.”

Calling their behavior “outrageous and morally repugnant,” a lawyer for Mr. Cosby, Monique Pressley, said in a statement, “Mr. Cosby states plainly that he neither drugged nor sexually assaulted the defendants and that each defendant has maliciously and knowingly published multiple false statements and accusations from fall 2014 through the current day.”

Ten women have sued Mr. Cosby for defamation in four separate cases, asserting that they were branded liars when his representatives forcefully dismissed their allegations. The women could not sue him on grounds directly related to their accusations of sexual assault because the statute of limitations for such cases had expired.

Ms. Pressley did not respond immediately to the question of whether Mr. Cosby plans countersuits in the three other cases.

Recently, Mr. Cosby has been complaining in court papers of the damage accusations by many women have done to his reputation and business contracts. On Monday Boston University became the latest institution to revoke an honorary degree it had awarded him.

In his suit in Massachusetts, he demanded maximum compensation and punitive damages for the “campaign to assassinate Mr. Cosby’s reputation and character.”

Mr. Cosby denied on Monday that his own statements had been defamatory and once again tried to undermine the women’s claims against him, calling them in the statement from his lawyer “multi-decade old, false, uncorroborated, opportunistic allegations.”

Joseph Cammarata, a lawyer for the seven women — Tamara Green, Therese Serignese, Linda Traitz, Louisa Moritz, Barbara Bowman, Joan Tarshis and Angela Leslie — said: “If anyone is surprised by Cosby’s actions today, they shouldn’t be. He’s taken a page out of the defense attorney’s playbook in an effort to shift the focus of this legitimate inquiry.”

Gloria Allred, a lawyer who represents other women who have made allegations against Mr. Cosby, said he “appears to be going to war against women who have sued him in Massachusetts.”

“Such a tactic will not deter courageous women from fighting the battle against him,” she said.

Sara Brady, a public relations specialist in crisis management who is not involved in the case, said the strength of the response is a further attempt by Mr. Cosby’s legal team to discredit the women.

Because the women have a strong narrative, she said, “What else is he going to do? He doesn’t have anything to lose at this point other than more money.”

[iammalcolmx]

Do people actually admit to drugging and raping scores of women?