Drama Trails Bill Cosby Sexual Assault Case as Juror Leaks Why a Mistrial was Declared

Drama Trails Bill Cosby Sexual Assault Case as Juror Leaks Why a Mistrial was Declared

The drama surrounding the Bill Cosby trial is stirring tensed conversation after one of the jurors revealed what happened during their deliberations and why a mistrial was declared.

Recall that last week, Judge Steven O’Reilly presiding over the trial declared a mistrial after the jury failed to reach a verdict in the case following over 30 hours of tensed deliberations.

The 79-year-old comedian  was being tried for sexually assaulting Andrea Constand after giving her pills and fondling her, an incident that allegedly occurred at his gated estate near Philadelphia in 2004. The comedian acknowledged he gave her three and half-tablets of Benadryl, an over-the-counter cold and allergy medicine, to help her relax. However, insisted that Constand was a ‘willing sexual partner’.

Last week, after an 8-day trial, the jury got deadlocked and a mistrial was declared. During an earlier interview, Judge Steven O’Neill said the jury were not allowed to reveal details of what jurors said during the deliberations. However, yesterday, the judge ordered the public release of the jurors’ names, granting a request by a media organizations who claimed that the release of such information would help in transparency in judicial processes.

Following the release of name, a juror who was contacted by ABC shared what went on inside the cramped room. The juror, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said two jurors refused to vote to convict Cosby.

“They were not moving, no matter what,” the juror said, and this led to near-fight during the deliberations. “If we kept going, there was definitely going to be a fight,” the juror said. “They had five sheriff’s deputies at the door and they could hear us and they kept coming in because they thought we were already fighting.”

They deadlocked at 10-2 to convict Bill Cosby on the first and third felony counts, and 11-1 to acquit on the second count.

The information leaked to the press is stirring major drama. While some people say it would affect in selecting new jurors during the re-trial that may happen in 4 months, the press insists this is what transparency looks like.