Pennsylvania county stuck with Bill Cosby’s prosecution tab as conviction is overturned
The order for Bill Cosby to pay prosecution fees was vacated
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturned disgraced actor Bill Cosby’s conviction on Wednesday, leaving a Pennsylvania county with trial-related tab that Cosby will likely never have to pay.
A spokesperson for the Montgomery County District Attorney’s office told FOX Business on Wednesday that Cosby had been ordered to pay the costs of the prosecution, which were $76,077.79.
Cosby had not paid those costs to date, and the order has been vacated, the spokesperson confirmed.
BILL COSBY RELEASED FROM PENNSYLVANIA PRISON AFTER SEX ASSAULT CASE THROWN OUT
The 2017 trial cost the local government an estimated $219,000, as reported by The Associated Press at the time. Half of those costs were spent on overtime for security guards, deputies and court staffers, while hotel fees for jurors rang in at $46,000 and their meals cost $14,000.
However, the overall costs were likely higher because the case was re-tried in 2018. The first trial resulted in a hung jury, while the second trial resulted in a guilty verdict following two days of juror deliberations.
A regional news outfit said the county ended up with a bill around $420,000.
The DA’s office declined to give updated figures regarding the overall costs of the trial when asked by FOX Business on Wednesday.
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Cosby had served more than two years of his sentence, which was set at three to 10 years. He was also ordered to pay a fine of $25,000 and the costs of prosecution.
He was convicted of drugging and sexually assaulting a woman 14 years ago at his Pennsylvania home.
The court, which overturned the decision because they believed Cosby’s due process was violated, said on Wednesday that any future prosecution of these particular charges was not allowed.
Cosby was forced to testify and had given four sworn depositions in civil proceedings where he made several incriminating comments in 2005, in exchange for the DA’s assurances that he would not be prosecuted. That testimony was later used in the criminal trial against Cosby.