The invitation to Bill Cosby’s mansion that changed Andrea Constand’s life forever | Book Excerpt

In her new book, “Chasing Cosby: The Downfall of America’s Dad” (Seal Press), former Philadelphia Daily News reporter Nicole Weisensee Egan details the turbulent legal battle that led to the conviction of Philadelphia native and beloved Hollywood superstar Bill Cosby.

The story begins in January 2005 with Andrea Constand, who claimed that Cosby had drugged and sexually assaulted her. As the story became public, 13 other women came forward with similar accounts, but a month later, the DA closed the case.

It wasn’t until 2014, after a video of Hannibal Buress calling Cosby a rapist went viral, that Constand’s story really took off. Sixty other women came forward with accusations about Cosby drugging and sexually assaulting them, which ultimately prompted the DA’s office to reopen the case in 2015.

Cosby’s first trial, in 2017 — for three counts of aggravated indecent assault against Constand — ended in a mistrial due to a deadlocked jury. But he was convicted in 2018 at his second trial, which allowed testimony from five other accusers and a defense witness, Margo Jackson, who said Constand told her she framed Cosby for money. CLICK FOR MORE