A court in California has ordered veteran American entertainer, Bill Cosby, to pay more than $19 million to a woman who accused him of drugging and sexually assaulting her more than five decades ago.
The woman, identified as Donna Motsinger, said she was working as a waitress over 50 years ago when Cosby began targeting her after visiting the restaurant where she worked.
According to court documents, Cosby allegedly picked her up in his limousine on one occasion, gave her wine and what she believed was aspirin.
She later began losing consciousness and woke up at home wearing only her underwear.
The civil case was decided in Santa Monica, where a jury deliberated for three days before ordering Cosby to pay $19.3 million in damages.
The amount could increase if punitive damages are added.
Cosby, now 88, reportedly told his lawyers he did not remember any sexual contact with Motsinger, but said any encounter that may have occurred was consensual.
The case was heard in the same courthouse where another jury in 2022 ordered Cosby to pay $500,000 to Judy Huth after finding he had molested her in 1975 when she was 16.
Cosby was previously jailed in Pennsylvania in 2018 for drugging and molesting a woman in a separate criminal case but was released in 2021 after his conviction was overturned on a legal technicality.
Once known as “America’s Dad” for his role in The Cosby Show, Cosby was one of the most influential figures in American television.
Over the years, dozens of women have accused him of drugging and sexually assaulting them.
