Nine women file sexual assault suits against Bill Cosby after Nevada abolishes statute of limitations for civil cases
Nine women have filed a sexual assault lawsuit against Bill Cosby in Nevada, just weeks after the state abolished the statute of limitations for civil cases.
The lawsuit accuses Cosby of using his “enormous power, fame and prestige” to isolate and sexually assault each of the women named in the lawsuit.
Janice Dickinson, Lise-Lotte Lublin, Janice Baker Kinney, Lili Bernard, Heidi Thomas, Linda Kirpatrick, Rebecca Cooper, Pam Joy Abeyta and Angela Leslie all claim the actor and comedian attacked them.
Cosby has been accused of sexual abuses ranging from groping to rape by more than 60 women
Many of the allegations are decades old, but are being revived as states change statutes defining how courts handle sexual misconduct cases.
Andrew Wyatt, Cosby’s spokesperson, accused the women suing the comedian of being motivated by their “addiction to massive amounts of media attention and greed”.
“From this day forward, we will not continue to allow these women to parade various accounts … against Mr. Cosby anymore without vetting them in the court of public opinion and inside of the courtroom,” Wyatt said in a statement.
Model and TV presenter Janice Dickinson is one of the women suing Bill Cosby Pic: AP
The 85-year-old comedian has consistently denied all allegations of sexual abuse.
He did spend more than two years in prison after being convicted of sexually assaulting a woman in 2018.
However, that conviction was overturned in 2021 after the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that the prosecuting district attorney was obliged to stand by his predecessor’s promise not to charge the actor after he gave potentially incriminating testimony in a civil suit
Cosby was found civilly liable in 2022 for molesting Judy Huth at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles in 1975, when she was 16. His lawyers called her a liar.
Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo signed SB129 on 31 May, which eliminated the civil statute of limitations in sexual abuse cases involving adults.
Before that, the state had a two-year limit for adults to bring their cases in court.
Ms Lise-Lotte Lublin, a Nevada native, is one of the women named in the suit. She and other Cosby accusers advocated for the legislation change that made this new claim possible.
Lublin has publicly accused Cosby of drugging her at a hotel in Las Vegas in 1989, alleging that she met him at his room so that he could evaluate her acting with an improvisation.
Cosby is then alleged to have given her two drinks that he said would “help her relax,” but caused her to feel disoriented and he embraced her a short time after.
The comic then grabbed her wrists and held them between his legs, touching her hair as he masturbated, according to the filing.
Nevada native Lise-Lotte Lublin, who lobbied for the law change, alleges Bill Cosby sexually assaulted her in 1989 Pic AP
All the other women level similar accusations against the comic, that he drugged and sexually assaulted them, often after inviting them to meetings regarding their careers.
Cosby is also facing a civil lawsuit in California, filed earlier this month by former Playboy model Victoria Valentino.
She has accused him of drugging her and raping her in 1969, which he has also denied.
Children are among the fatalities in a mass shooting at a child’s birthday party in California.
Police said four people had died and 10 were wounded in the incident in Stockton, about 60 miles east of San Francisco.
Officers were called on Saturday to a banquet hall just before 6pm local time (2am UK time) and district attorney Ron Freitas said children were among the dead.
He said the attacker was still at large.
First responders walk through a parking lot near the scene of a mass shooting in Stockton, California. Pics: AP
“We can confirm at this time that approximately 14 individuals were struck by gunfire, and four victims have been confirmed deceased,” San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office said on X.
The post said early indications suggest it could be a “targeted incident” but that information remains limited.
Police have so far not disclosed the attacker’s identity and the motive is unclear.
Stockton’s vice mayor Jason Lee confirmed on Facebook that the shooting on Lucile Avenue happened at a child’s birthday party.
Pics: AP
Mayor Christina Fugazzi also said that “families should be together instead of at the hospital, standing next to their loved one, praying that they survive”.
California governor Gavin Newsom’s office added that he had been briefed on the “horrific shooting”.
Venezuela has accused Donald Trump of a “colonial threat” after he said the airspace “above and surrounding” the country should be considered closed “in its entirety”.
Mr Trump made the declaration amid growing tensions with President Maduro – and as the US continues attacking boats it claims are carrying drugs from Venezuela.
He wrote on Truth Social: “To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY.”
Air traffic above Venezuela on Saturday afternoon. Pic: FlightRadar24
Venezuela’s foreign affairs office called it a “colonial threat” and “illegal, and unjustified aggression”.
It accused the president of threatening “the sovereignty of the national airspace… and the full sovereignty of the Venezuelan state”.
President Trump’s words were part of a “permanent policy of aggression against our country” that breached international law and the UN Charter, it added.
The Pentagon and the White House have so far not given any additional detail on the president’s statement.
Mr Trump’s post comes after the American aviation regulator last week warned of a “potentially hazardous situation” over Venezuela due to a “worsening security situation”.
Nicolas Maduro is widely considered a dictator by the West. Pic: Reuters
The South American nation revoked operating rights for six major airlines that went on to suspend flights to the country.
Mr Trump warned a few days ago that land operations against suspected Venezuelan drug traffickers would begin “very soon”.
Such a move would be a major escalation in Operation Southern Spear – the US naval deployment in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific that’s so far attacked at least 21 vessels.
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Three killed as US strikes another alleged drug boat
Venezuela has said the attacks, which have killed more than 80 people, amount to murder.
The US has released videos of boats being targeted, but hasn’t provided evidence – such as photos of their cargo – to support the smuggling claims.
Read more:
Trump may have another motive in war on drugs
The US-Venezuela crisis explained
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Venezuela claims Trump creating ‘fables’ to justify ‘war’
The Pentagon has sought to justify the strikes by labelling the drug gangs as “foreign terrorist organisations” – putting them on par with the likes of al Qaeda.
It claims the boats targeted are carrying drugs bound for the US, although Sky’s chief correspondent says the final destination is likely to be Europe and West Africa.
President Maduro has denied Mr Trump’s claims he is involved in the drugs trade himself and said his counterpart wants to oust him so he can install a more sympathetic government.
Venezuelan officials have also claimed Mr Trump’s true motivation is access to the country’s plentiful oil reserves.
Mr Maduro is widely considered a dictator who’s cheated elections and has been president since 2013.
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