Cosby Found Liable for 1972 Assault, Awarded $19M

0:00It's March 24th. You're listening to Dallas News today, AI-powered local news. A California civil jury ruled that 88-year-old Bill Cosby, drugged and sexually assaulted Donna Motsinger back in 1972. After a nearly two-week trial in Santa Monica, they found him liable and awarded her $19,250,000 in damages, including $17,500,000 for past harm and $1,750,000 for future self-defense. Jurors took just over a day to decide, focusing on claims from when Motsinger was a server in her 30s, and Cosby invited her to a comedy show near. San Francisco, Cosby's lawyers expressed disappointment and vowed a full appeal. This comes nearly five years after Pennsylvania's top court freed him from prison by overturning a similar criminal conviction where he had served, almost three years. The trial featured testimony from Andrea Constan, whose own case against Cosby drew national

1:00attention in the early days of the Me Too movement. Cosby did not take the stand himself. A phase for punitive damages starts later today and could increase the total payout. With more than 60 women raising parallel accusations over decades, these outcomes continued to reshape accountability in higher profile cases like his.