Cosby Avoids Fondling Charge

Bill Cosby will not face charges stemming from a woman’s allegation that he fondled her at his suburban mansion after giving her medication that made her woozy, a prosecutor said Thursday.

Authorities found insufficient “credible and admissible evidence

An unidentified former Temple University employee, who now lives in her native Ontario, told Canadian authorities last month that, after a night out with friends in January 2004, Cosby gave her medication that made her dizzy, then fondled her. She said she later awoke to find her bra undone and her clothes in disarray.

Cosby, 67, a Temple alumnus, has denied the allegations. In a statement, his lawyer said Cosby was gratified by the decision.

“Mr. Cosby looks forward to moving on with his life,” lawyer Walter M. Phillips Jr. said.

Castor has said that the accuser’s yearlong delay in coming forward, and her contact with Cosby in the last year, weighed in the comedian’s favor.

The prosecutor said he also reviewed claims by other people that Cosby had “behaved inappropriately” toward them, but that detectives could find no instance “where anyone complained to law enforcement of conduct which would constitute a criminal offense.”

The woman’s lawyer called the evidence strong and criticized Castor for failing to notify her before announcing his decision.

“I believe it was a very strong case. She’s a very credible witness,” lawyer Dolores M. Troiani said.

Troiani said her client gave prosecutors tapes of telephone calls between Cosby and her that bolstered the allegations.