Bill Cosby Sued for Defamation by Alleged Victim

A woman who has accused Bill Cosby of sexually assaulting her in the 1970s filed a defamation lawsuit Wednesday against the comedian, alleging he “publicly branded” her a liar through statements made by his lawyer and publicist.

Tamara Green said in the lawsuit filed in federal court that Cosby drugged and assaulted her when she was an aspiring model. Green first spoke publicly about the alleged attack in 2005.

Green says after she did media interviews, Cosby’s lawyer and publicist made statements intended to expose her to public contempt and ridicule.

The attorney, Walter M. Phillips Jr., declined to comment. Messages left for the publicist, David Brokaw, weren’t immediately returned. Cosby is the lawsuit’s only defendant.

Cosby, 77, has never been charged in connection with any sexual assault allegations.

In 2005, Cosby settled a civil case filed by Andrea Constand, a former employee at Temple University in Philadelphia. Green was one of a dozen women who were prepared to testify in Constand’s lawsuit that Cosby sexually assaulted them.

Through his representatives, Cosby has denied renewed allegations by women alleging decades-old sexual assaults.

Joseph Cammarata, a Washington, D.C., attorney who represents Green in her defamation lawsuit, said the statute of limitations has expired for the women who have accused Cosby to seek criminal charges against him.

“This lawsuit provides an opportunity for Ms. Green and Mr. Cosby to litigate the truth or falsity of the comments,” Cammarata said.

Los Angeles attorney Martin Singer, who has represented Cosby in the renewed round of allegations, did not immediately return calls seeking comment on Green’s lawsuit.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages. Green, 66, could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday.