On Saturday, Judge Steven O’Neill of the Bill Cosby sexual assault trial declared a mistrial after the jury was deadlocked.
The jury for the Norristown, Pennsylvania trial deliberated for more than 52 hours over 6 days on charges that Cosby drugged and molested a woman over a decade ago. The jury could not reach a unanimous decision on any of the three counts against Cosby, therefore unable to reach a verdict. District Attorney Kevin Steele plans to put him on trial a second time.
“She has shown such courage through this, and we are in awe of what she has done,” Steele said of accuser Andrea Constand. “She’s entitled to a verdict in this case.”
Over two years, 60 women have accused Cosby of sexual assault, with Constand’s accusation being the only to result in criminal charges.
None of the jurors, who were from the Pittsburgh area approximately 300 miles away from the courthouse, commented after the trial. It was not made clear how many jurors wanted to convict or acquit.
Judge Steven O’Neill comforted the jurors by saying their work was “one of the more courageous acts, one of the more selfless acts that I’ve seen in the justice system,” and he reminded prosecutors and the defense that “a mistrial is neither vindication nor victory for anybody.”
Be the first to comment