Camille Cosby Avoids Testifying, Complains She Was Threatened With U.S. Marshals

Even the smallest of victories are in short supply for Bill and Camille Cosby these days. Facing challenges in the civil and criminal courts – as well as in the omnipresent court of public opinion – the fallen star and his wife of over 50 years are now fighting to keep some semblance of privacy in their ostensibly troubled marriage. And for the moment, it appears that a federal judge is willing to grant the couple a bit of consideration amid a rising tide of sordid allegations on potential penalties.

As previously reported by The Inquisitr, Camille Cosby has been granted a temporary stay from a previous order requiring her to testify in a deposition in a civil case involving her husband, Bill Cosby. Camille Cosby had been ordered to appear for the January 6 deposition by a federal magistrate in Massachusetts. The Cosby camp argued that Mrs. Cosby should be excused from testifying against her husband because of their marital status and a federal judge ultimately agreed to postpone the deposition until the Court can review the matter in greater detail.

The Cosby camp earned the temporary stay by effectively arguing that their private conversations were protected under the Massachusetts Marital Disqualification Rule. But as noted by Huffington Post, Camille Cosby’s attorneys also suggested that the star’s wife would endure irreparable damages and embarrassment in the event that her testimony should be disclosed to the public.

“Plaintiffs have indicated that they intend to disclose Mrs. Cosby’s deposition testimony, including her private marital conversations, to the press,” said Mrs. Cosby’s legal counsel via a motion filed with the Court. “In his Order, the Magistrate has suggested that the Plaintiffs may ask Mrs. Cosby about the most intimate details of her marital life, including her husband’s sexual ‘proclivities’…. Plaintiffs have made clear that they will publicize all such testimony.”

Through her attorneys, Camille Cosby also complained that the Plaintiffs in the case threatened to send U.S. Marshals to retrieve her in the event that she failed to appear for the scheduled deposition.

“Plaintiffs responded that they would oppose any appeal or stay of the Order … Plaintiffs also threatened, absent an order from this Court, to “enforce [Mrs. Cosby’s] appearance, on the date of the deposition, by whatever legally appropriate means are available, including by ‘obtaining the assistance of the U.S. Marshalls [sic] to secure her attendance.'”

The civil suit in Massachusetts stems from Bill Cosby’s public denouncement of some of the women who have accused him of sexually molesting them in the past. Through his attorney, Cosby referred to the women as “liars,” prompting the alleged victims to file a civil suit against the comedian for defamation. Bill Cosby is also facing criminal charges in Pennsylvania for a 2004 allegation of sexual assault.

As more and more allegations against Bill Cosby have surfaced over the course of the past two decades, Camille Cosby has been the subject of increasing scrutiny over concerns that she failed to act or speak out regarding her husband’s inappropriate behavior. For her part, Mrs. Cosby’s tolerance for the entire situation appears to be at an all-time low at present, as Page Six and other sources have noted that she recently commented that Bill Cosby deserves “every bit of hell he’s going through now.”

Bill Cosby denies having assaulted any of the women involved in the civil suit and he has filed his own counterclaim against them, according to a report by Boston Globe.

[Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for the Jackie Robinson Foundation]