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737 KB
Extraction Summary
3
People
2
Organizations
1
Locations
2
Events
2
Relationships
5
Quotes
Document Information
Type:
Court filing / legal opinion exhibit
File Size:
737 KB
Summary
This document is a page from a legal filing in the case United States v. Ghislaine Maxwell (Case 1:20-cr-00330-PAE), filed on July 2, 2021. It contains an excerpt from a judicial opinion regarding *Commonwealth v. Cosby*, specifically discussing former D.A. Bruce Castor's testimony and emails asserting his intent to permanently bind the Commonwealth from prosecuting Bill Cosby for a 2004 incident to remove his Fifth Amendment protections in civil court. This case law was likely cited in the Maxwell trial regarding the validity of non-prosecution agreements.
People (3)
| Name | Role | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Cosby | Defendant/Subject |
Subject of a non-prosecution decision and legal analysis regarding transactional immunity.
|
| Castor | Former District Attorney |
Testified about his intent to bind the Commonwealth from prosecuting Cosby via a press release and emails.
|
| Ferman | Then-District Attorney |
Recipient of emails from Castor regarding the binding nature of the non-prosecution decision.
|
Organizations (2)
| Name | Type | Context |
|---|---|---|
| The Commonwealth |
Refers to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the prosecuting authority.
|
|
| Department of Justice (DOJ) |
Implied by Bates stamp 'DOJ-OGR'.
|
Locations (1)
| Location | Context |
|---|---|
|
Jurisdiction of the legal proceedings.
|
Key Quotes (5)
"intentionally and specifically bound the Commonwealth that there would be no state prosecution."Source
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Quote #1
"stating that the Commonwealth will not bring a case against Cosby for this incident based upon then-available evidence."Source
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Quote #2
"absolute that [Cosby] never would be prosecuted."Source
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Quote #3
"remove 'for all time' the prospect of a prosecution"Source
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Quote #4
"only a steadfast guarantee would permanently strip Cosby of his right to invoke the Fifth Amendment."Source
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Quote #5
Full Extracted Text
Complete text extracted from the document (2,153 characters)
Case 1:20-cr-00330-PAE Document 310-1 Filed 07/02/21 Page 51 of 80
Cosby was not a formal attempt to bestow transactional immunity upon Cosby is
supported by the record.
supported by the record.
The trial court’s description of former D.A. Castor’s testimony as inconsistent and
equivocal finds support in the record as well. At times, the former district attorney was
emphatic that he intended his decision not to prosecute Cosby to bind the Commonwealth
permanently, provided no substantive changes occurred in the case, such as Cosby
confessing to the alleged crimes or proof appearing that Cosby had lied to, or attempted
to deceive, the investigators. In addition to the unconditional nature of the press release,
former D.A. Castor told then-District Attorney Ferman in his first email to her that he
“intentionally and specifically bound the Commonwealth that there would be no state
prosecution.” N.T., 2/2/2016, Exh. D-5. In his second email to D.A. Ferman, Mr. Castor
asserted that, by “signing off” on the press release, he was “stating that the
Commonwealth will not bring a case against Cosby for this incident based upon then-
available evidence.” Id., Exh. D-7.
equivocal finds support in the record as well. At times, the former district attorney was
emphatic that he intended his decision not to prosecute Cosby to bind the Commonwealth
permanently, provided no substantive changes occurred in the case, such as Cosby
confessing to the alleged crimes or proof appearing that Cosby had lied to, or attempted
to deceive, the investigators. In addition to the unconditional nature of the press release,
former D.A. Castor told then-District Attorney Ferman in his first email to her that he
“intentionally and specifically bound the Commonwealth that there would be no state
prosecution.” N.T., 2/2/2016, Exh. D-5. In his second email to D.A. Ferman, Mr. Castor
asserted that, by “signing off” on the press release, he was “stating that the
Commonwealth will not bring a case against Cosby for this incident based upon then-
available evidence.” Id., Exh. D-7.
Further indicative of his intent to forever preclude prosecution of Cosby for the
2004 incident, former D.A. Castor testified that the signed press release was meant to
serve as proof for a future civil judge that Cosby would not be prosecuted, thus stripping
Cosby of his Fifth Amendment right not to testify. Mr. Castor emphasized that his decision
was “absolute that [Cosby] never would be prosecuted.” T.C.O. at 52. The former district
attorney stressed that his intent was to “absolutely” remove “for all time” the prospect of
a prosecution, because, in his view, only a steadfast guarantee would permanently strip
Cosby of his right to invoke the Fifth Amendment. N.T., 2/2/2016, at 67. Mr. Castor also
expounded upon the purpose of his emails to D.A. Ferman, which he claimed were an
attempt to inform her that, while he bound the Commonwealth with regard to the 2004
incident, she was free to prosecute Cosby for any other crimes that she might uncover.
2004 incident, former D.A. Castor testified that the signed press release was meant to
serve as proof for a future civil judge that Cosby would not be prosecuted, thus stripping
Cosby of his Fifth Amendment right not to testify. Mr. Castor emphasized that his decision
was “absolute that [Cosby] never would be prosecuted.” T.C.O. at 52. The former district
attorney stressed that his intent was to “absolutely” remove “for all time” the prospect of
a prosecution, because, in his view, only a steadfast guarantee would permanently strip
Cosby of his right to invoke the Fifth Amendment. N.T., 2/2/2016, at 67. Mr. Castor also
expounded upon the purpose of his emails to D.A. Ferman, which he claimed were an
attempt to inform her that, while he bound the Commonwealth with regard to the 2004
incident, she was free to prosecute Cosby for any other crimes that she might uncover.
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DOJ-OGR-00004863
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