Cosby, 78, surrendered his passport and posted 10 percent of his $1 million bail at his arraignment in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, Wednesday afternoon. He faces three counts: assault without consent, assault when the complainant is unconscious or unaware that penetration is occurring, and assault when the person impairs the complainant. They all stem from from a 2004 incident in which former Temple University employee Andrea Constand says Cosby drugged and molested her at his suburban Philadelphia home.
Many of the women who have accused Cosby of assaulting them have said they would be willing to testify in a criminal trial against Cosby. If that comes to fruition, it would give several alleged victims the chance to make their voices heard in a court of law after the statute of limitations passed on their own cases.
“If Andrea’s case winds up getting the full justice that she deserves, then we are there for her and we would be in court — we would be in court even if we weren’t testifying,” Victoria Valentino, who says Cosby drugged and raped her, told ABC News. “We’d be there in the grand stands rooting her on, lending positive vibes and love to her.”
Here’s what some of his more than 50 accusers had to say about Cosby facing criminal charges.
Victoria Valentino: Valentino told ABC News that she couldn’t wait to “get together with all the ladies for a celebration party and crack open the champagne.”
The former Playboy model was still trying to contend with feelings of disbelief, and said she began to cry when she saw Cosby’s mugshot.
“I just never really thought I’d see the day,” Valentino said. “I can’t bear to look at his face, you know, but to see him in a vulnerable position compared to how he made us feel so vulnerable. It’s justice. It’s just karma.”
She told CNN, “I just want him to stand up and tell the truth and take it like a man. I want the truth to come out. I want justice to be served, and I want justice to prevail for all of the women, all of these victims, who have suffered watching him receive accolades all these years while they were suffering the consequences of PTSD from their encounters with him.”
Beverly Johnson: Johnson caused quite a stir when she publicly accused Cosby of drugging her in a first-person account published in Vanity Fair.
“When it comes down to it, truth is simple,” Johnson tweeted Wednesday. “There is nothing that we give to others that does not come back to us in some shape or form.”
Beth Ferrier: Ferrier has accused Cosby of drugging and raping her in Denver in the 1980s.
“Today is still just a good day, regardless of if he is found guilty or not guilty,” Ferrier told CBS Denver. “We’re hoping that we get our day in court.” She added: “If someone speaks to you about sexual assault, you need to believe them, believe the women.”
Sarita Butterfield: Butterfield, a former Playboy bunny, has said that Cosby molested her in a guest house yards away from his family when he invited her to join the Cosbys for Christmas Eve dinner in 1977. Cosby’s wife, Camille, was noticeably absent when he showed up for his arraignment with his attorneys Brian McMonagle and Monique Pressley this week.
Butterfield told TMZ: “If I could tell his wife something, I would tell her, ‘Shame on you for being an accessory to his criminal act.’ She should be charged also as an accomplice.”
P.J. Masten: Masten was a Playboy bunny like Butterfield and Valentino. She told the New York Daily News that Cosby drugged and raped her when she was working at a Chicago Playboy Club in 1979, and accused him of assaulting 12 other bunnies.
“Oh my God, finally, finally, we’re all validated,” Masten told the Daily News. “Our voices together brought this monster down. I’m so happy that the world is going to now see what we know. We’ve pulled his mask off.”
Sammie Mays: Mays was a writer who said Cosby gave her a spiked drink and assaulted her. She publicly accused him of assault in a May press conference with lawyer Gloria Allred and “Cosby Show” actress Lili Bernard.
“Please don’t let him die without being convicted because it will save his reputation,” she told TMZ.
© 2015, The Washington Post
