Bill Cosby sexual assault retrial scheduled for November: What to know

Embattled comedian Bill Cosby heads back to court Tuesday as the pretrial conference gets underway for his sexual assault retrial in November.

Cosby, who turned 80 last month, is expected to face a new trial at the beginning of November on charges that he drugged and sexually assaulted a woman in his Pennsylvania home in 2004.

A judge declared a mistrial on June 17 after jurors failed to reach a verdict when Cosby first went to court for the charges. Now, Cosby is hoping to head into his new trial with fresh lawyers.

Here’s what to know about the case.

Prosecution’s allegations

Cosby is accused of giving Andrea Constand, a former Temple University employee, pills that left her incapacitated before he performed sexual acts on her without her consent.

Constand and Cosby met while she was the director for the women’s basketball team at Temple, Cosby’s Philadelphia alma mater. The pair “developed what [Constand] believed to be a sincere friendship,” and Constand eventually looked to the older comedian as a mentor, according to court documents.

Constand alleged that Cosby made sexual advances toward her multiple times, and she turned him down. But on one specific visit to his home in January or February 2004, Cosby gave her “three blue pills” that blurred her vision and made her feel as though she was “in and out”  [of consciousness] according to court documents.

Cosby then engaged in sexual acts with Constand, while she couldn’t move or speak, that she did not consent to, she said.

While more than 60 women have come forward over the years to accuse the man once affectionately known as “America’s Dad” of sexual misconduct, Constand’s allegations are the only ones that brought a criminal case against Cosby. Many of the other women’s accusations fall outside of the statute of limitations.

Defense counters

Cosby and his lawyers have maintained that any interaction between the pair was consensual.

Despite some back-and-forth, Cosby didn’t end up testifying at his first trial.

Constand sued Cosby in 2005, and the pair settled for an undisclosed amount the next year. In the deposition for that case, Cosby admitted to buying Quaaludes and giving women drugs and alcohol before sex – but he said every interaction was consensual, including with Constand.

During the trial, Cosby’s defense sought to discredit Constand – pointing to inconsistencies in her story. The defense also noted that Cosby and Constand have spoken over the phone dozens of times since the alleged incident, with Constand initiating the majority of those calls.

First mistrial

Cosby’s trial ended in a mistrial on June 17 after the jury deliberated for more than 52 hours over six days and still couldn’t reach a verdict.

Prosecutors immediately promised to retry Cosby, who is free from prison on a $1 million bail.

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Infamous attorney Tom Mesereau arrives for Bill Cosby’s pretrial hearing in the embattled comedian’s sexual assault case. Cosby wants a judge to sign off on a new legal team that includes Mesereau.  (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

“We will reevaluate and review our case and will retry it and move as soon as possible,” Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele said after the decision.

Jurors from the trial are under strict guidance from Judge Steven T. O’Neill about what they can reveal about the case so as not to sway the jurors in the upcoming retrial, according to the The New York Times.

Jurors cannot disclose “arguments or comments made, or votes cast.”

Pretrial discussions

Ahead of the upcoming new trial, Cosby’s two lawyers – including lead attorney in the case Brian J. McMonagle – asked a judge to be removed.

Cosby’s new legal team includes Thomas Mesereau, the attorney who has infamously defended celebrities, including Michael Jackson when he was charged with child molestation.

Kathleen Bliss and Sam Silver are also part of Cosby’s legal team, Cosby tweeted Monday.

Tuesday’s pretrial inside the Montgomery County Courthouse in Norristown, Pa., is expected to cover Cosby’s change in legal representation, where the retrial will be held and other issues pertaining to the upcoming retrial.

Fox News’ Tamara Gitt and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

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