Bill Cosby’s accusers, activists and even fans are reacting to news that the comedian’s sexual assault conviction was overturned by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Wednesday.
As previously reported, the court vacated Cosby’s indecent assault conviction after agreeing last year to hear two points in Cosby’s appeal. Cosby, 83, was sentenced in 2018 to three to 10 years in prison after he was convicted of three counts of indecent assault and battery for sexually assaulting and drugging Andrea Constand in 2004.
The state’s Supreme Court found that Cosby, who was released on Wednesday after serving over two years of his sentence, should not have been charged or sentenced in the 2018 Constand case due to the fact that he had previously made a deal with a prosecutor in Constand’s 2005 civil lawsuit.
It didn’t take long for many of Cosby accusers, survivors, and even supporters to speak out about the overturned conviction.
Accuser Victoria Valentino said she was “absolutely in shock” by the news of Cosby’s conviction being overturned while appearing on ABC News Live.
“My stomach is lurching and I am deeply distressed about the injustice of the whole thing,” she said, calling Cosby “a sociopath” and “a serial rapist.”
Janice Baker Kinney, who is also one of Cosby’s 60 accusers, said she too was “shocked” by the court’s decision.
E. Jean Carroll, the columnist who has accused Donald Trump of raping her wrote, “This is why women don’t come forward.”
Meanwhile, Cosby’s The Cosby Show co-star Phylicia Rashad, who played his onscreen wife, reacted to the news, writing, “FINALLY!!!! A terrible wrong is being righted- a miscarriage of justice is corrected!”
Attorney Gloria Allred also commented, praising those who “bravely testified” in Cosby’s criminal cases.
“Despite the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s decision, this was an important fight for justice,” she said. “Even though the court overturned the conviction on technical grounds, it did not vindicate Bill Cosby’s conduct, and it should not be interpreted as a statement or a finding that he did not engage in the acts of which he has been accused.”
Songwriter Diane Warren, posed a question in response to the news: “Did Bill Cosby drug the PA Supreme Court?”
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