Witnesses back sex abuse suit against Bill Cosby, says lawyer for one victim

Los Angeles: A lawyer for a woman who says Bill Cosby sexually abused her when she was 15 stated in a recent court filing that he has interviewed two witnesses who corroborate her story. Attorney Marc Strecker wrote in a sworn declaration filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday that he has reviewed photographs of his client, Judy Huth, with Cosby at the Playboy Mansion in the mid-1970s, the place and time she says the abuse happened. Huth’s sexual battery lawsuit against Cosby comes amid a flurry of allegations that he drugged and sexually assaulted more than a dozen women. Cosby’s attorney Martin Singer is seeking to dismiss the suit and has called it an extortion attempt. He says Huth tried to sell her story to a tabloid 10 years ago and contends that undercuts her claim of recently discovered psychological damage. Singer did not return a phone message from The Associated Press seeking comment Monday. [caption id=“attachment_1834021” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Bill Cosby in this file photo. AFP[/caption] The AP doesn’t normally identify people who say they are victims of sexual abuse, but Huth has come forward publicly in the lawsuit and at a news conference. Strecker’s declaration does not provide details about how the witnesses corroborate Huth’s story, but her lawsuit states that she and a 16-year-old female friend were taken to the Playboy Mansion by Cosby sometime around 1974. The lawsuit states that they met him at a film shoot, and he later gave them alcohol while they played pool, before he took them to the mansion. Strecker’s filing also includes a declaration from Dr. Anthony E. Reading, a clinical psychologist who interviewed Huth and stated there is “a reasonable basis to believe that Ms. Huth has been subject to childhood sexual abuse.” Reading’s statement does not mention Cosby. Strecker didn’t return a call from AP. Los Angeles police are investigating Huth’s allegations. She appeared at a news conference Dec. 5 with attorney Gloria Allred, who held up decades-old photographs of Huth with Cosby. Allred wrote in an email Monday that the photos were taken at the Playboy Mansion. Associated Press