Judge postpones Bill Cosby deposition in Calif. sex abuse case

SANTA MONICA, Calif. — A California judge on Wednesday delayed a deposition of comedian Bill Cosby that had been scheduled for next week in a sex abuse lawsuit to avoid any interference with a criminal case against Cosby in Pennsylvania.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Craig Kaplan also put on hold any further deposition of Judy Huth, the woman who sued Cosby in December 2014 accusing him of plying her with alcohol and sexually abusing her at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles when she was 15 years old in 1974.

“I do think it’s fair to stay discovery as to both parties,” Kaplan said.

Kaplan, in agreeing with lawyers for Cosby who had sought to put his deposition on hold, expressed concern that if the deposition proceeded as scheduled, Cosby might be forced to plead his constitutional right not to incriminate himself because of the Pennsylvania criminal case.

If that were to occur, Cosby might not be able to present testimony in his own defense, Kaplan said.

The judge allowed depositions of other witnesses in the case to proceed, and Huth’s lawyer Gloria Allred said she planned to depose Playboy founder Hugh Hefner.

More than 50 women have come forward over the past two years to accuse Cosby of sexual assault, often saying he plied them with drugs or alcohol.

Earlier this week, Cosby lost his bid to throw out a defamation lawsuit against himself and his former lawyer brought by supermodel Janice Dickinson, clearing the way for a trial.