|
Cosby cancels Broward Center
shows in wake of sex allegations
January 21, 2005, 10:02 AM EST
FORT LAUDERDALE -- Comedian Bill Cosby has postponed
shows in three cities including Fort Lauderdale through the
weekend, citing personal reasons.
The announcement follows revelations that a female
acquaintance of Cosby has made an allegation against him
that has prompted a police investigation in Pennsylvania,
the entertainer's attorney in Los Angeles said on
Thursday.
Attorney Walter Phillips said he spoke with authorities
in Pennsylvania who told him they have begun an
investigation. He would not discuss the specifics of the
allegation - which he called "utterly preposterous" - but
said it amounts to, at the most, "inappropriate
touching."
No charges have been brought against Cosby. Phillips said
the accuser, who lives in Canada, knows Cosby and the
alleged incident in question happened about a year ago.
Police in Cheltenham Township, Pa., a Philadelphia suburb
where Cosby has a home, declined to comment.
"I know the person making the accusation hasn't been
contacted by authorities," Phillips said in a telephone
interview with The Associated Press from his office in
Philadelphia. "We are hopeful and optimistic that no charges
will be brought forward."
Dave Selby, a spokesman with the Durham Regional Police
in Durham, Ontario, said police had passed on allegations
from a woman there to authorities in Pennsylvania but
declined to confirm whether they involved Cosby.
The anonymous woman has alleged Cosby invited her back to
his home after meeting her at a Pennsylvania restaurant and
gave her pills that made her dizzy after she complained of
stress and tension.
She admits her memory about what happened next on the
night last January is fuzzy, but she alleges Cosby touched
her breast and placed her hand on his genitals.
In a complaint made to Toronto Police, which was passed
to Philadelphia authorities to investigate, the woman also
claims she awoke around 4 a.m. the following morning with
her clothing in disarray and her bra undone.
Cosby's accuser states she didn't report the incident
immediately because she was concerned it might effect her
standing at Temple University in Philadelphia, where she
worked.
Cosby has not been charged in the case.
The funnyman postponed a town hall meeting in Cleveland
on Thursday and has postponed three upcoming shows, two in
Fort Lauderdale and one in Daytona Beach, his publicist
David Brokaw said. Brokaw would not say whether the
postponements have anything to do with the allegation.
Performances scheduled on Sunday at 4 and 7 p.m. at the
Broward Center in Fort Lauderdale will be rescheduled for an
as-yet-undetermined date, according to a statement from the
theater.
Tickets for Sunday's Fort Lauderdale performances will be
refunded automatically, according to the theater. People who
had tickets for Sunday's canceled performance will be given
priority to purchase new tickets when a date is set for
Cosby to appear.
|
