Raven-Symoné tries to separate Bill Cosby legacy from ‘horrific’ allegations

Raven-Symoné has addressed the allegations made against Bill Cosby, who saw his conviction for criminal sexual assault overturned in 2021.

Raven-Symoné tries to separate Bill Cosby’s TV legacy from his “horrific” sexual assault allegation.

The 39-year-old actress – who was cast in The Cosby Show from 1989 until its final season in 1992 – has insisted her approach is to try and “separate the creator from the creation”.

Speaking on the Hate To Break It To Ya podcast, she said: “The creation changed America. Changed television.

“He’s also been accused of some horrific things. That does not excuse, but that’s his personal [life].

“So personally, keep that there, and then business-wise, know what he did there as well.

“Like you said, both can live, and I think our culture is right to… don’t do wrong. Don’t do wrong personally. You just can’t do wrong.”

More than 60 women have publicly accused Cosby of sexual misconduct, with various lawsuits.

In 2016, he was ordered to stand trial by the Montgomery County Magisterial District Court, which started in June 2017 and ended in a mistrial 12 days later as a jury failed to reach a verdict.

He was convicted of three felony counts of aggravated indecent assault in a 2018 retrial, and sentenced to three to 10 years in prison.

Cosby was released from jail in 2021 after three years behind bars when his conviction for criminal sexual assault was overturned by the Supreme Court due to an agreement with Montgomery County prosecutor Bruce Castor.

Under that agreement, Pennsylvania supreme court ruled that Cosby should not have been able to be charged again.

The decision read: “The collective weight of these considerations led D.A. Castor to conclude that, unless Cosby confessed, there was insufficient credible and admissible evidence upon which any charge against Mr. Cosby related to the Constand incident could be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Cosby posted on X, then Twitter, at the time: “I have never changed my stance nor my story. I have always maintained my innocence.

“Thank you to all my fans, supporters and friends who stood by me through this ordeal. Special thanks to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court for upholding the rule of law. #BillCosby”