Bill Cosby’s Lawyers Want Him Out of Jail Amid Coronavirus
‘VULNERABLE’
REUTERS
Bill Cosby’s lawyers are considering filing a motion asking for his release from prison amid the novel coronavirus pandemic. Cosby’s spokesman told Page Six that more than one prison officer at the Pennsylvania penitentiary SCI Phoenix, where Cosby is being held, has tested positive for COVID-19. “Mr. Cosby’s legal team are just exploring all legal options, since we all understand that prisons are a super accelerant for the Covid-19 virus, since these inmates are in close quarters 90% of the day and they’re in constant contact with officers who could possibly be infected and don’t know,” the actor’s publicist, Andrew Wyatt, told The Daily Beast. Cosby was found guilty of sexual assault in 2018, after dozens of women had come forward with allegations of sexual assault. He filed his latest appeal in January. As he awaited a verdict, Cosby was previously on house arrest in his 9,000-square-foot mansion in his home. In recent days, the Trump administration has been weighing the idea of releasing some federal prisoners to reduce the risk of outbreaks within the prison system.
“We believe it is only a matter of time before Mr. Cosby’s prison likely falls victim to the virus, such a confined space is the perfect place for a virus to spread rapidly, it is hazardous to the prison staff and vulnerable inmates,” Wyatt told Page Six. “Bill Cosby is no detriment or danger to the community. He can’t go anywhere, he is elderly, he is blind. He can stay under house arrest with an ankle bracelet, as he did before, with his wife taking care of him. Let him do his time at home.”