Page 7 - ARUBA TODAY

A7
U.S. NEWS Wednesday 28 June 2017

Cosby rejects ‘sexual assault tour’ idea floated by reps

By BRIAN MELLEY plans will be given at the
Associated Press appropriate time.”
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) The comedian and actor
— Bill Cosby’s “town hall” once known as “America’s
tour is unlikely to happen Dad” for his TV role on “The
before his retrial on sex as- Cosby Show” as paternal
sault charges in Pennsylva- Dr. Cliff Huxtable has had
nia, one of his lawyers said his reputation tarnished
Tuesday. with accusations of sexual
Attorney Angela Agrusa abuse by nearly 60 women.
said after a hearing to set One of those accusers is
a trial date in a sex abuse Judy Huth, who accused
lawsuit in Los Angeles Supe- the comedian of forcing
rior Court against the co- her to perform a sex act
median that Cosby won’t on him in a bedroom at
be discussing sexual assault the Playboy Mansion in Los
and she “can’t imagine” Angeles around 1974 when
his legal team would let she was 15.
him perform or speak pub- Judge Craig Karlan tenta-
licly as representatives said tively scheduled that trial
he planned to do this sum- for July 30 next year with
mer. the expectation it would
“He doesn’t take lightly occur after a retrial in Penn-
these criminal charges,” Angela Agrusa, attorney for entertainer Bill Cosby, who is accused of sexual assault by Judy sylvania.
Agrusa said. “He would Huth at the Playboy Mansion more than 40 years ago, speaks outside Los Angeles Superior Cosby is due to give a sec-
Court after a hearing, Tuesday, June 27, 2017, in Santa Monica, Calif. The purpose of the hearing
never do anything that un- was to set a trial date in the civil case. ond deposition in the case,
dermined the importance (AP Photo/Reed Saxon) but that won’t occur un-
of this issue. I don’t see him Spokespeople for Cosby After those plans were criti- missing it as propaganda, til after the criminal case
speaking publicly like that.” and his wife had said the cized, though, a spokes- though he left open the is concluded because he
Talk of the forums after a forums — at least one woman said the meetings possibility of some future could assert his right not to
jury deadlocked in Pennsyl- planned in Birmingham, Al- were never intended to be event. testify against himself.
vania in the criminal case abama, next month when about sexual assault but “The current propaganda Huth’s attorney Gloria All-
sparked a backlash from Cosby turns 80 — were an effort to restore Cosby’s that I am going to con- red said if Cosby does
groups that advocate for aimed at educating young legacy. duct a sexual assault tour stage public meetings, she
sexual assault victims and people how to stay out of Cosby himself took issue is false,” Cosby said in a may hold her own forums in
educate about sexual trouble and be aware of Tuesday with the notion of statement. “Any further those cities to discuss sexu-
abuse. changing sex assault laws. a “sexual assault tour,” dis- information about public al assault.q

Shkreli jury selection expected to take a third day

NEW YORK (AP) — Jury se- of potential jurors’ nega- prospective juror after he a media company where Shkreli’s use of Twitter to troll
lection at the securities tive remarks about him was told her that he worked for he became aware of his critics.q
fraud trial of a former phar- tainting the process. Under
maceutical CEO notori- questioning by the judge,
ous for price-gouging hit a one of them had called
rough patch on Tuesday as him “the face of corporate
the court struggled to pick greed,” a reference to his
a pool of prospective jurors reputation for raising the
who could ignore a swirl of price of a life-saving drug
bad publicity for the defen- by 5,000 percent and mak-
dant. ing no apologies about it.
A third day of jury selection The judge denied defense
in Martin Shkreli’s trial was requests to start the selec-
expected on Wednesday tion over and ban reporters
with opening statements from listening in on sidebars.
put off until Thursday morn- She agreed to re-question
ing. about 40 people who had
On Tuesday, defense law- already qualified for the
yers complained to the pool as a precaution.
judge that news coverage The judge excused one