Bill Cosby trial: Ten of the 12 jurors thought he was guilty

After days of heated arguments the jury returned a deadlocked verdict and a mistrial was declared. Photo / AP

Of the 12 jurors at Bill Cosby's sexual assault trial, only two thought the star was innocent but refused to listen to persuading arguments, it has been revealed.

In an interview with ABC, one of the jurors, who chose to remain anonymous, told how discussions at the highly publicised trial grew so tense, some in the group punched walls and cried as they tried hopelessly to reach a verdict.

Cosby, 79, was charged with three counts of aggravated sexual assault for allegedly attacking Temple University basketball coach Andrea Constand at his Philadelphia home in 2004.

His trial played out at the Montgomery County Courthouse in Norristown, Pennsylvania, for two weeks before a mistrial was declared last Friday, the Daily Mail reports.

On Wednesday, as they spoke out for the first time, one of the jurors revealed that 10 in the jury were convinced he was guilty of digitally penetrating Constand without her consent, the first charge.

Of the second count - that Constand was unconscious or unaware of what was happening to her after being given drugs by the comedian - 11 jurors thought he was innocent and only one thought he was guilty.

The third count suggested that Cosby gave Constand the drugs without her knowledge by slipping them to her somehow. Again, 10 jurors thought he was guilty but two, who "wouldn't budge, would not move", did not.

Eventually, after days of heated arguments in a small deliberation room where jurors were "walking in circles", they returned a deadlocked verdict to the judge.

A mistrial was declared and Cosby, who was confident he would either be acquitted or see a mistrial, left the court on bail.

In the interview with ABC, the juror refused to say which way they voted and declined to name any of their peers.

The juror insisted that despite widespread accusations from other women who claimed to have been assaulted by Cosby in the public sphere, nothing except from the contents of the trial was discussed.

"We never brought anything outside in. Never. Not once. If somebody would mention something, we would cut them off," they said.

At the start of deliberations, the jurors all voted to acquit Cosby on all three charges before they began discussing the case.

Ten of the 12 jurors thought Bill Cosby was guilty of sexually assaulting Andrea Constand. Photo / AP

Somewhere along the line, many changed their votes but it was not enough to return convictions on any of the counts.

There was no lack of tension in the deliberation room. Sheriff's deputies had to be posted outside and broke in several times, worried the group had begun fighting, they said, adding that one male juror punched a concrete wall because he was so irate.

"I think he broke his pinky knuckle. If we kept going, there was definitely going to be a fight.

"They had five sheriff's deputies at the door and they could hear us and they kept coming in because they thought we were already fighting," the juror said.

The 12 jurors were initially placed in a larger room but had to be moved when a judge was told that journalists could see in through a window.

The second room was so small that it drove them "crazy".

"People couldn't even pace. They were just literally walking in circles where they were standing because they were losing their minds.

"People would just start crying out of nowhere, we wouldn't even be talking about [the case] - and people would just start crying," the juror said.

Earlier this week, an alternate juror shared his regret at not having been drafted in to bring Constand the verdict she was seeking.

Mike McCloskey, one of the four stand-ins, said he felt like he "let Andrea down" and believed she was an "honest lady".

"I felt like we could have brought justice. But unfortunately being an alternate, I didn't have a decision in that matter," he told radio station NBC affiliate WDVE.

On Wednesday, Constand spoke for the first time since last week's sensational court outcome.

"Thank you for the outpouring of love & kindness & support. I am eternally grateful for the messages I have received in recent days," she said on Twitter.

Cosby maintains that the encounter in 2004 was consensual. In previous depositions, he described giving the woman Benadryl to relax her beforehand but insists he did not sexually attack her.

Despite not taking the stand, trial insiders say Cosby was vocal in his optimism.
According to some who spoke to the Page Six website after the mistrial was declared, he made light of the trial by referring to the courtroom as his "stage" and said the room where he was being kept to wait during breaks was his "dressing room".

His wife Camille made few appearances at the trial but spoke with him on the phone when she wasn't there.

After his mistrial was declared, an impassioned statement she had written was read out on the courtroom steps.

As part of it, she thanked the jurors who sided with her husband, saying: "I am grateful to any of the jurors who tenaciously fought to review the evidence."

She furiously lashed out at the District Attorney, calling him "heinously and exploitively ambitious".

On Tuesday, the trial judge granted a request from several media outlets to release the names of the jurors.

Constand is neither the first nor last woman to accuse Cosby of sexual misconduct but her accusations against him are the only ones which have ever reached a criminal court.
Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele vowed to retry Cosby immediately after last Friday's mistrial was declared.

"We will take a hard look at everything involved and then move this forward as soon as possible. Andrea Constand is entitled to a verdict in this case," he said.