Bill Cosby has temporarily dropped his defamation lawsuit against Beverly Johnson, the former model who accused him of drugging her.
Johnson says she was drugged almost three decades ago but was able to escape his house. The alleged incident was recounted in her memoir, The Face That Changed It All, and also in a Vanity Fair piece last year. Cosby filed the defamation lawsuit last December and called Johnson’s allegations “false, malicious, opportunistic and defamatory.”
In regards to dropping the case, Cosby’s rep said in a statement that it has to do with the criminal case Cosby faces in Pennsylvania.
“The case has been voluntarily dismissed at this time due to the pendency of the criminal proceedings in Montgomery County, Pa., which impede Mr. Cosby’s ability to fully participate in litigating the civil case against Ms. Johnson. We fully expect to refile the complaint against her prior to the expiration of the statute of limitations,” the statement read.
Cosby, 78, is due in a Pennsylvania court March 8 regarding his criminal case involving aggravated indecent assault allegations made by a former Temple University employee.