Cosby, woman settle suit over alleged assault in Pa.

11/8/2006

PHILADELPHIA Bill Cosby has settled a civil lawsuit filed by a woman who said the entertainer drugged and sexually assaulted her at his home outside Philadelphia.

Terms of the settlement will remain confidential, according to a one-paragraph statement issued today by the woman s law firm.

Cosby s publicist, David Brokaw, confirmed the settlement and said there would be no further comment.

The woman claimed that Cosby, 69, assaulted her at his mansion in Cheltenham in early 2004. Attorneys for Cosby say the comedian gave the woman Benadryl after she complained of stress and sleeping problems.

The federal judge presiding over the case earlier denied Cosby s request for a gag order and the plaintiff s request to shield the names of a dozen other women who say Cosby assaulted them.

The plaintiff, a native of Ontario, Canada, who is in her 30s, previously worked at Temple University in Philadelphia. She is identified in court documents, but The Associated Press does not publish names of alleged sexual assault victims without their consent.

Read more in later editions of The Blade and toledoblade.com