Actor and comedian Bill Cosby will be facing criminal charges in connection with accusation that he drugged and sexually abused a woman at his home in January 2004, Montgomery County prosecutors announced in a press conference on Wednesday morning.

First Assistant District Attorney Kevin Steele explained that Cosby is facing charges for aggravated indecent assault involving Andrea Constand, 42, who was working with the Temple University basketball team at the time. While there are over 50 women who have accused Cosby of similar assaults, these charges only involve the one survivor.

According to the New York Times, Constand went to Cosby’s home where he made two sexual advances at her. When she rejected those advances, Cosby encouraged her “to take pills and drink wine until she was unable to move.” Cosby then sexually assaulted Constand. However, the case was abandoned until new information was released in July 2015.

After investigating the accusations further, Steele decided to bring charges, announcing Wednesday that “a person in that state cannot give consent.”

According to People magazine, Constand’s lawyers are pleased that her accusations have been taken seriously. At the time, Constand was in a relationship with a woman but says that Cosby’s claims of consensual sex were him being a “narcissist” and missing the cues that she was actually gay.

Constand is now a massage therapist in Ontario, Canada. Her lawyers say she is ready to face Cosby in court.

Prosecutors had until January to file charges before the statute of limitations on Constand’s case expired.

Cosby has denied the allegations of the many women who have come forward detailing their alleged experiences with the entertainer. He recently filed a defamation suit, denying their claims.

 

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons