A woman who accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault in 1972 was awarded $59 million earlier this year after a jury found the disgraced comedian liable for his actions.
The woman, Donna Motsinger, claimed in new court documents obtained by Fox News Digital that Cosby allegedly “has not paid a single dollar” of awarded damages, and asked a judge to hold the fallen television star in contempt of court after violating an October order.
Joshua Wurtzel, partner at Schlam Stone & Dolan LLP, explained that there’s a “real possibility” the court issues a warrant for Cosby’s arrest, but not for failing to pay the judgment.
BILL COSBY FOUND LIABLE FOR 1972 SEXUAL ASSAULT, JURY AWARDS $59.25M TO ACCUSER
“Courts typically are not able to jail people for unpaid civil debts,” Wurtzel told Fox News Digital. “The warrant would be for ignoring the court’s October order requiring him to answer written questions about his assets under oath.
“If the court issues an order to show cause, Cosby is personally served, and he does not appear, California law lets the judge issue a warrant directing the sheriff to bring him in. And if the court holds him in contempt, it can order him confined until he answers the questions.”
Wurtzel noted that being held in contempt is “both a serious threat and a tactic to force compliance.”
“But if Cosby is located outside of California, it may be very difficult to actually execute on the arrest warrant and will depend on whether law enforcement in California is willing to have him extradited from another state,” Wurtzel said.
Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer Danny Rubin told Fox News Digital that Motsinger’s request for a “debtor’s examination” could benefit her case against Cosby.
“Someone who was awarded money in a civil judgment is able to conduct what’s called a ‘debtor’s exam’ where the judgment debtor, the person who owes the money, must provide information as to the amount of his total assets and where they are located,” Rubin said.
“Failure to appear for this exam can result in an arrest warrant. This is a serious legal tactic to force someone to sit for a debtor’s exam. Arrest warrants are usually granted in cases where the debtor has repeatedly failed to appear.”
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In March, Cosby was found liable for drugging and sexually assaulting the former waitress more than 50 years ago.
He was then ordered to pay Motsinger $59.25 million in damages – $17.5 million for her past mental trauma and an additional $1.75 million for mental suffering Motsinger may experience in the future. She was also awarded $40 million in punitive damages.
In October, Judge Bradley S. Phillips granted Motsinger’s request for a hearing on a motion to compel, and also ordered Cosby to “serve verified, code-compliant responses, without objection, within ten (10) days of this Order.”
Additionally, the judge ordered that Cosby “shall pay monetary sanctions of $1560 to Plaintiff’s counsel within ten (10) days of this Order.”
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In Motsinger’s latest request, she claimed Cosby’s “noncompliance is not partial, late, or excusable. It is total. He served no responses by October 19, and he has served none since. He paid nothing by October 19, and he has paid nothing since.”
Cosby’s reluctance to pay could also result in his disclosure of financial information – data that hasn’t been publicly revealed and could potentially offer a rare look into what’s left from his Hollywood fortune.
Oakland criminal defense lawyer Jo-Anna Nieves explained that Cosby’s bank accounts, investments, real estate, business interests, income, and other assets” could soon be on the line for review.
“Depending on the circumstances, that investigation could also extend to financial transactions involving family members or entities connected to him,” Nieves told Fox News Digital. “That doesn’t necessarily mean every financial record will become public. Some information may remain confidential or be subject to protective orders.
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“For someone who accumulated considerable wealth over decades in entertainment, these disclosures could provide a detailed picture of his current financial situation, including whether his fortune has diminished, been transferred, or remains tied up in assets that are difficult to access.”
She added, “The important question isn’t simply how much money Cosby earned during his career: it’s how much he owns today, where those assets are held, and which assets are legally available to satisfy the judgment.”
Cosby’s representatives did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Motsinger was one of the 12 anonymous “Jane Does” who testified in a 2005 civil rape case filed against Cosby by former Temple University athletics director Andrea Constand. The case was settled out of court one year later.
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Cosby was released from prison in 2021 after the Pennsylvania Supreme Court vacated his 2018 criminal conviction for sexual assault.
The disgraced actor, once known as “America’s Dad,” served more than two years of his three-to-10-year sentence after he was convicted of drugging and molesting a woman at his Cheltenham, Pa., home in 2004.
The state’s highest court threw out Cosby’s conviction after finding that District Attorney Kevin Steele, the prosecutor who brought the case against Cosby, violated an agreement to not charge him that previous District Attorney Bruce Castor had made in 2005, though the deal had apparently never been put in writing.
Cosby has maintained his innocence.
In June 2022, jurors found Cosby sexually abused Judith Huth, who accused the former comedian of sexual assault at the Playboy mansion in 1975 when she was a teen.
Former Playboy model Victoria Valentino, now 80, filed a lawsuit against Cosby in June, and claimed Cosby drugged and raped her in 1969. The model has previously spoken about her allegations against the comedian and even appeared at his sentencing in 2021.
