Bill Cosby’s request for a new trial has been denied, as a judge has ordered him to pay the judgment amount to Donna Motsinger, one of the women who accused Cosby of sexually assaulting her.
Why did the judge deny Cosby’s request?
On Friday, Los Angeles judge Bradley S. Phillips denied Cosby’s motion, which he filed last month, for a new trial. The former comedian, 88, had attempted to overturn the verdict but was unsuccessful. He will now have to pay nearly $60 million to Motsinger, which he described as an “excessive” amount, according to court documents obtained by USA Today.
Phillips wrote in his ruling that Cosby “has not shown that there was any irregularity in the proceedings or any order or abuse of discretion by the Court that prevented [Cosby] from having a fair trial.”
He also stated the Cosby Show star did not show “either the compensatory or punitive damages are excessive; that the evidence was insufficient to justify the verdict or that the verdict is against law; or that there was any error in law,” per USA Today.
How much did Donna Motsinger receive in her civil lawsuit?
The ruling follows a March verdict by a Southern California civil jury, which awarded Motsinger $19.2 million in the sexual abuse lawsuit she filed in 2023. In the documents, she said she first met Cosby while working as a waiter at a restaurant in Sausalito, California, in 1972, Blavity reported.
He then followed Motsinger to her home and asked if she would attend his stand-up show in San Francisco. After giving her a ride in his limo to the Circle Star Theater, he offered her a glass of wine, according to the suit. Motsinger described feeling sick after Cosby gave her what appeared to be aspirin. She went in and out of consciousness and woke up the next morning at her home, only wearing panties, per Blavity.
The jury found Cosby liable for sexual battery and sexual assault of an intoxicated person. Motsinger was awarded $17.5 million for past mental suffering, as well as $1.75 million for future suffering; and $40 million in punitive damages, for a total of $59.25 million, according to Blavity and USA Today.
Cosby’s legal team calls out jury over its verdict
In April, Cosby and his lawyers argued in a motion that the $40 million was too much and that the former actor-comedian couldn’t afford it. They stated that the payout “does not advance the purpose of deterring future conduct” because Cosby “needs no deterrence at this stage in his life.”
“He is an 88 year old man with no sight who lives an isolated life,” Cosby’s lawyers wrote in the motion, USA Today reported.
Cosby’s legal team also accused the jury of excessively punishing the Philadelphia native after its been more than two decades since his sexual last misconduct case.
“It is clear that this jury acted out of passion and prejudice, punishing the Defendant to take a stand against all would-be abusers in positions of power and celebrity,” his lawyers claimed. “[Motsinger’s] argument centered on telling the jury to send a message to the world with its verdict. The jury did just that. But its award far exceeded the purpose and function of punitive damages.”