Bill Cosby is battling back against new allegations that he drugged and fondled an underling 30-plus years ago.
Cosby's attorney, Walter Phillips, issued a statement blasting the claims made by model-turned-lawyer Tamara Green in a story in Wednesday's Philadelphia Daily News. Phillips also took aim at the paper itself for printing what he called bogus allegations.
"Mr. Cosby does not know the name Tamara Green," Phillips said. "The incident she describes did not happen."
According to the newspaper, Green was hired by Cosby's production company in California to work on a new nightclub venture more than three decades ago.
"I was a starry-eyed 20-year-old wannabe and he was this famous guy," the accuser told the paper. "I was introduced to him by a mutual friend, a doctor."
Green, now 57, said that once, when she told Cosby she felt ill, he offered her what she thought were two decongestants. After downing them, she said she lost control of her motor skills. Cosby then drove her to her home, where, she claims, the entertainer stripped off her clothes and "tried to rape me."
"I told him, 'You'll have to kill me,' " Green recounted saying as she fended him off. "[He left] after I threw a lamp at him. He tossed $200 onto a table, which really pissed me off."
Green said she went public because her experience closely resembled the allegations of sexual misconduct brought last month against the 67-year-old Cosby by a female employee at his alma mater, Temple University.
In that case, the alleged victim--a 31-year-old ex-basketball player who worked at the school's athletic department--says she had met Cosby for dinner with a group of friends last January. After complaining of stress and tension, she says Cosby gave her medicine that made her feel dizzy.
The woman, who has asked that her identity be kept secret, says that Cosby then took her to his home in suburban Philadelphia, where he supposedly fondled her breasts and placed her hand on his genitals.
Cosby's attorney Phillips called the allegations "bizarre" and questioned why the woman waited a year to go public.
After interviewing both Cosby and his accuser, Pennsylvania prosecutors have been wondering the same thing, hinting at a press conference that the yearlong delay may have damaged her case.
A spokeswoman for the Montgomery County District Attorney, which is expected to announce next week whether misdemeanor sexual harassment charges will be filed against Cosby, could not be reached for comment on the latest allegations.
However, assistant D.A. Risa Vetri Ferman told the Associated Press that it's doubtful Green's story--as old as it is--would impact the decision.
"Generally, an accusation from over 30 years ago is not going to be considered admissible in court or relevant to an investigation," she said.
Green, who did not respond to messages left at her office in Ventura, California, has been the subject of disciplinary actions by the State Bar of California. She entered an assistance program last fall that helps lawyers cope with substance abuse and/or mental health issues. Earlier in 2004, she came under investigation after three clients lodged 12 counts of misconduct against her, most having to do with mishandling of money.
Cosby, who has been married to wife Camille for 41 years, has resumed his schedule of comedy shows and personal appearances after canceling several speaking engagements when news of the allegations first broke. His favored topic of late: railing against what he says are low morals in the African-American community.