Rumors swirl about Cosby’s mental state in prison

In an interview with Frankie Darcell of radio station WDAS, Cosby’s longtime publicists Ebonee Benson and Andrew Wyatt discussed their recent visit with the disgraced star.

According to Cosby publicist Andrew Wyatt, Cosby believes he is being incarcerated “for infidelity” and not the sexual assault. “He’s behind bars for infidelity,” Wyatt said. “The reason he says and we say that this is bigger than Bill Cosby is, for other black people, this could be your son, your father, your family member. They are trying to change the laws.”

Bill Cosby was found guilty of three counts of sexual assault in April 2018. Cosby, 81, had long held a reputation as a benevolent father figure thanks to his long-running NBC sitcom The Cosby Show and work in film and as a comedian, creating a bitter debate between people who can’t reconcile criminal charges with one of their favorite stars and others who believe he should be held accountable.

Wyatt added that Cosby believes civil rights icons like the late Malcolm X, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela foresaw the justice system bringing him down for speaking up for civil rights. Unlike Cosby, none of the three activists were ever charged with sexual assault.

“He said they told him that if he was going to continue to fight for civil rights, something like this was bound to happen and he’s been prepared for it and he knows he’s in prison not for rape, but for infidelity,” Wyatt said. “He knows he’s innocent and he’s kept his head up.”

Wyatt’s colleague Ebonee Benson affirmed that despite his incarceration, Cosby is alert and healthy. “He’s sharp and he talked about what his team is doing on the outside and his wife, who has been so supportive,” Benson said.

In September, Cosby was sentenced to three to 10 years in prison for his conviction on indecent sexual assault charges involving a 2004 incident with former Temple University employee Andrea Constand.