Following the not-so-surprising mistrial that ended Bill Cosby’s criminal trial for sexual assault, word surfaced of the very-suprising news that the former TV actor planned to go on a speaking tour that would teach young people how to avoid sexual assault allegations. Reacting to these proposed town halls, one Cosby accuser likened the idea to “Jeffrey Dahmer hosting a town hall meeting on the joy of cooking.” An outdated reference, but an apt comparison. Someone must have pointed out to Cosby how awful this idea was because he’s now denying that a tour was ever in the works.
“The current propaganda that I am going to conduct a sexual assault tour is false,” Cosby said in a statement. “Any further information about public plans will be given at the appropriate time.” It’s a strong move to call something floated by your own publicist “propaganda.”
Angela Agrusa, Cosby’s attorney, reiterated her client’s statement, calling the idea of a town hall “misinformation.” Agrusa also said that the retrial of his criminal case would likely be jeopardized by such a tour.
“He does not take lightly these criminal charges,” she said. “He would never do anything that undermined the import of this issue. So I don’t see him speaking publicly like that, no.”
However, she was quick to point out that Cosby wouldn’t be stepping away from public life completely. “I think he’d like to be able to publicly perform, I just don’t think the timing is right,” she said.
Argusa’s comments were made after a hearing in California for a new civil case against Cosby that alleges he sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl at the Playboy Mansion in 1974. That case received a preliminary court date of July 2018.
(via CNN)