BILL Cosby is set to be released from prison after his charges were dropped due to an "unfair trial."
Cosby has served more than two years of a three to 10-year sentence at a state prison near Philadelphia.
He had vowed to serve all 10 years rather than acknowledge any remorse over the 2004 encounter with accuser Andrea Constand.
The 83-year-old Cosby, who was once beloved as "America’s Dad," was convicted of drugging and molesting the Temple University employee at his suburban estate.
He was charged in late 2015, when a prosecutor armed with newly unsealed evidence — Cosby’s damaging deposition from her lawsuit — arrested him days before the 12-year statute of limitations expired.
The trial judge had allowed just one other accuser to testify at Cosby’s first trial, when the jury deadlocked.
Read our Bill Cosby live blog for the latest news and updates…
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Mollie Mansfield
ICE T MAKES SHOCKING COMMENT
Ice T published a shocking tweet following the news that Cosby was set to be released from jail today.
"Oh shit Bill Cosby might be touching back down on the bricks…. Hot Boy Summer!," the rapper wrote.
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Mollie Mansfield
COSBY SAID 'WOW' AFTER HEARING NEWS
Bill Cosby reportedly said "wow" when he heard that he was set to be released from jail.
According to ABC, Cosby's attorney said that his client responded with "wow" and "unbelievable" when he was told the news.
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Mollie Mansfield
ACTRESS DEBRA MESSING REACTS TO NEWS
Actress Debra Messing took to Twitter to react to the upcoming release of Bill Cosby.
"To every woman who was sexual assaulted by #BillCosby my heart hurts for you today and I am full fury. It’s horrifying."
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Mollie Mansfield
ACCUSER'S SON DIED IN A SWIMMING POOL ACCIDENT
Five years later her son died in a swimming pool accident.
Victoria told the Guardian: "I was dead inside – like someone had taken a dull knife and gutted me."
After she left Playboy, Valentino began working as a hospice respiratory nurse.
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Mollie Mansfield
WHO IS FORMER PLAYBOY BUNNY VICTORIA VALENTINO?
The former Playboy bunny accused Bill Cosby of drugging and raping her.
The 77-year-old was raised in Connecticut but moved to California the summer after she graduated from high school.
She joined a folk group and married a man from Cuba, and the couple had a son, Tony, together.
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Mollie Mansfield
VICTORIA VALENTINO SAVED SOMEONE'S LIFE
The former Playboy bunny accused Bill Cosby of drugging and raping her.
She also helped save a man's life who was shot in Southern California.
Valentino, who once worked as a nurse at a hospice, rushed to the scene and helped treat his wound while the paramedics got there.
Cosby has maintained his innocence.
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Mollie Mansfield
COSBY PREVIOUSLY GAVE SUPPORT TO WEINSTEIN
Cosby lent his support to convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein after releasing a statement asking "where do wealthy and famous men find fairness".
The actor instructed his representative to issue a public statement calling Weinstein's conviction a "very sad day."
It came after Weinstein was convicted by a New York jury of raping aspiring actress Jessica Mann sexually assaulting former production assistant Mimi Haleyi.
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Mollie Mansfield
PUBLICIST SAID COSBY 'WASN'T SURPRISED' ABOUT LACK OF PAROLE
Cosby's rep, Andrew Wyatt, told TMZ that the former comedian was not surprised that his parole attempt was denied, since he was told it would be if he did not participate in the sex offender program.
Wyatt told the outlet that Cosby is still hopeful that the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court will vacate his conviction, however.
Cosby has maintained his innocence throughout all of his legal proceedings.
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Mollie Mansfield
COSBY WAS DENIED PAROLE
Cosby was denied parole for refusing to complete a sex offender therapy program.
The jailed actor, sentenced to 10 years for aggravated indecent assault, was turned down on May 11, a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania parole board said at the time.
Failure to take part in the sex offender therapy program was one of several reasons Cosby, 83, was denied, according to the board.
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Mollie Mansfield
COSBY WAS 'AMERICA'S DAD'
The 83-year-old Cosby, who was once beloved as "America’s Dad," was convicted of drugging and molesting the Temple University employee at his suburban estate.
He was charged in late 2015, when a prosecutor armed with newly unsealed evidence — Cosby’s damaging deposition from her lawsuit — arrested him days before the 12-year statute of limitations expired.
The trial judge had allowed just one other accuser to testify at Cosby’s first trial, when the jury deadlocked.
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Mollie Mansfield
COSBY TO BE 'PICKED UP IN HOURS'
Cosby's publicist, Andrew Wyatt, told ABC News that he will be picking the actor up from prison within hours.
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Mollie Mansfield
HOW DID COSBY'S CHILDREN DIE?
Cosby's only son Ennis was murdered in an attempted robbery in LA in 1997.
The 27-year-old was trying to change a tyre on the freeway ramp when he was shot dead.
After his murder, both President Bill Clinton and vice-president Al Gore called Cosby to offer their condolences and California state officials and tabloid magazines offered hundreds of thousands of dollars as a reward for capturing the gunman.
More than 800 tipsters called police and the murderer was caught two months after Ennis' death.
Ensa, 44, passed away on February 23, 2018, from renal failure while waiting for a kidney transplant.
Both Ennis and Ensa are buried in a plot of land known as "Ennis' Garden" on the Cosby estate in Massachusetts.
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Mollie Mansfield
COSBY 'DRUGGED AND SEXUALLY ASSAULTED WOMAN'
Cosby had invited Constand to an estate he owns in Pennsylvania the night she said he drugged and sexually assaulted her.
Constand, a former professional basketball player who worked at his alma mater, went to police a year later.
The other accusers knew Cosby through the entertainment industry and did not go to police.
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Mollie Mansfield
WHO ARE BILL COSBY'S KIDS?
The disgraced entertainer has five children – Erika, Erinn, Ennis, Ensa and Evin.
They are all with his wife of 56 years, Camille Cosby.
Erika Cosby, 55, is a painter and former professor of Art at New York University.
Her artwork has featured in many galleries including SALTWORKS Contemporary Art, the Arlington Arts Center, Slate Gallery and Artspace in New Haven.
Erinn, 54, is also artistic and is known for her photography, while 44-year-old Evin works in fashion and owns a boutique store called PB & Caviar after studying at the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC.
Evin, the youngest sibling, wrote an open letter defending her father in 2017.
Sadly, Ennis passed away in 1997 and and Ensa died in 2018.
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Mollie Mansfield
COSBY WAS 'GROUNBREAKING BLACK ACTOR'
Cosby, a groundbreaking black actor who grew up in public housing in Philadelphia, made a fortune estimated at $400million during his 50 years in the entertainment industry.
His trademark clean comedy and homespun wisdom fueled popular TV shows, books and standup acts.
He fell from favor in his later years as he lectured the black community about family values, but was attempting a comeback when he was arrested.
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Mollie Mansfield
FIRST CELEB TRIED IN 'METOO' ERA
Cosby was the first celebrity tried and convicted in the #MeToo era, so the reversal could make prosecutors wary of calling other accusers in similar cases.
The law on prior bad act testimony varies by state, though, and the ruling only holds sway in Pennsylvania.
Prosecutors did not immediately say if they would appeal or seek to try Cosby for a third time.
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Mollie Mansfield
'TESTIMONY TAINTED TRIAL'
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court said that testimony tainted the trial, even though a lower appeals court had found it appropriate to show a signature pattern of drugging and molesting women.
Cosby was the first celebrity tried and convicted in the #MeToo era, so the reversal could make prosecutors wary of calling other accusers in similar cases.
The law on prior bad act testimony varies by state, though, and the ruling only holds sway in Pennsylvania.
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Mollie Mansfield
COSBY PREVIOUSLY SEEN GRIMMING IN MUGSHOT
Bill Cosby was previously seen grinning in a mugshot that was taken at SCI Phoenix state prison.
The actor was smilingCredit: Splash News -
Mollie Mansfield
ACTOR VOWED TO SERVE ALL 10 YEARS
Cosby has served more than two years of a three to 10-year sentence at a state prison near Philadelphia.
He had vowed to serve all 10 years rather than acknowledge any remorse over the 2004 encounter with accuser Andrea Constand.
The 83-year-old Cosby, who was once beloved as "America’s Dad," was convicted of drugging and molesting the Temple University employee at his suburban estate.
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Mollie Mansfield
COSBY WAS ELIGIBLE FOR PAROLE THIS YEAR
This is the first year he was eligible for parole under the three- to 10-year sentence handed down after his 2018 conviction.
During the conviction, the court deemed the elderly inmate a "sexually violent predator" for posing an "imminent safety risk to women."
Cosby spokesperson Andrew Wyatt called the parole board decision “appalling.”
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Mollie Mansfield
DONALD TRUMP JR RESPONDS TO RELEASE
Donald Trump Jr has responded to the upcoming release of Bill Cosby.
"Bill Cosby is going free… released from prison today. WOW #cosby #billcosby," the former president's son wrote.
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Mollie Mansfield
COSBY SET TO BE RELEASED FROM JAIL
Bill Cosby is set to be released from prison after his charges were dropped due to an "unfair trial."
Cosby has served more than two years of a three to 10-year sentence at a state prison near Philadelphia.
He had vowed to serve all 10 years rather than acknowledge any remorse over the 2004 encounter with accuser Andrea Constand.
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