Bill Cosby found guilty of 1972 sexual assault, victim awarded nearly $60m

The actor faces allegations of sexual misconduct by at least 60 women, all of which he denies.

A United States jury has found stand-up comedy and television superstar Bill Cosby liable for drugging and sexually assaulting a woman in 1972, awarding her $59.25m.

After a nearly two-week trial in Santa Monica, California, jurors on Monday found the 88-year-old guilty of the sexual battery and assault of Donna Motsinger, who was a server at a restaurant in Sausalito near San Francisco at the time of the aggression.

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In her lawsuit, filed in 2023, Motsinger said Cosby had invited her to his stand-up comedy show at a theatre in nearby San Carlos. Both were in their 30s at the time.

She said Cosby gave her wine and two pills that she believed were aspirin, and that she was going in and out of consciousness as two men put her in a limousine.

“She woke up in her house with all her clothes off,” the lawsuit said. “She knew she had been drugged and raped by Bill Cosby.”

In court filings, Cosby’s lawyers argued that the allegations rested almost entirely on speculation and assumption, saying Motsinger “freely admits that she has no idea what happened”.

Cosby did not testify at the trial, whose witnesses included Andrea Constand, the Temple University sports administrator he was convicted of sexually assaulting in a Pennsylvania criminal court in 2018. The state’s Supreme Court threw out the verdict, and Cosby was freed from prison after serving nearly three years of a three- to 10-year sentence.

The once beloved actor, known as “America’s Dad” for his role on the Cosby Show, was the first celebrity to be convicted after the #MeToo movement was popularised following a number of allegations against well-known individuals in October 2017.

Motsinger’s lawsuit echoed allegations of rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment made by at least 60 women against Cosby, all of which he has denied.

The jury awarded Motsinger $17.5m in past damages and $1.75m for future damages, including “mental suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, inconvenience, grief, anxiety, humiliation, and emotional distress”.

Then, in a second phase of the trial on Monday afternoon, it awarded an additional $40m in punitive damages.

Cosby has settled several similar lawsuits and has been ordered to pay in others, but Monday’s award is likely the most he has had to pay in a case.

His lawyer, Jennifer Bonjean, said they were disappointed in the outcome and would appeal the verdict.

Motsinger said the verdict was not about her but about holding Cosby accountable. “I have carried the weight of what happened to me for more than 50 years. It never goes away,” she said.

“Today, a jury saw the truth and held him accountable. That means everything. I hope this gives strength to other survivors who are still waiting for their moment to be heard.”