In Philly Deposition, Cosby Describes Seducing Women With Drugs and Fame

In a deposition taken at Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Hotel a decade ago, Bill Cosby acknowledged pursuing young women for sex in a manipulative and calculating way, at times using drugs, money and his own fame as a way of seducing them.

According to the New York Times, which obtained a copy of Cosby’s deposition in a case brought by Andrea Constand, a young Temple employee who claimed Cosby drugged and sexually molested her in the early 2000s, the entertainer came across in his four days of testimony as “alternately annoyed, mocking, occasionally charming and sometimes boastful, often blithely describing sexual encounters in graphic detail.”

The Times cites several examples from the deposition, including an occasion where Cosby seduced a young model by showing interest in her father’s cancer, and promised other women mentorship “before pushing them for sex acts.”

The deposition, which Cosby had for years managed to keep private, also includes details about his relationship with Constand. Cosby describes a dinner at his home in Cheltenham where the two shared “a sexual moment,” short of intercourse.  On a subsequent evening at his home, he described giving Constand  one-and-a-half tablets of Benadryl to “relieve stress,” after which they kissed and had sexual contact. Constand’s lawyer said she believed it was a more powerful drug.

Cosby has never been charged with a crime and has denied accusations of sexual assault. Numerous women have stepped forward with claims that he drugged and molested them.