Cosby might get out-of-town jury at Montco sex-assault trial

Bill Cosby's sexual-assault trial in Montgomery County could have a jury from a different county.

Prosecutors said Thursday that they would not object to Cosby's request to have a jury brought in. But the entertainer cannot choose where the jury is selected, they said, and the jurors should be brought to Norristown for the trial.

District Attorney Kevin R. Steele said in a court filing that he would agree to selecting a jury from outside Montgomery County because doing so would expedite the case.

"We want to streamline the issues in this case, where practicable, and we are continuing to work to bring this defendant to trial as soon as possible," Steele wrote.

If County Court Judge Steven T. O'Neill signs off on the request, the state Supreme Court would choose the other county.

Cosby's lawyers said last week that the entertainer could not get a fair trial in Montgomery County, as news coverage and the use of the Cosby case in Steele's 2015 campaign for district attorney would taint the selection process. They said a jury should be pulled from an urban center with "more diverse and opposing viewpoints," but did not name which they would choose.

Steele suggested, however, that only Pittsburgh and Philadelphia would fit that description, and if local media coverage is an issue, Cosby is effectively requesting an Allegheny County jury.

Steele said he "remains confident that we can prove our case to any impartial jury," but argued that Cosby does not have a right to select the location for choosing it.

Cosby lawyer Brian J. McMonagle wrote in his filing that his client had been "branded variously a monster, a sociopath, and sexual predator."

Prosecutors said it would be difficult to find a venue anywhere in the United States where jurors are completely unaware of the allegations against Cosby, and argued that he cannot complain about national media coverage.

"The publicity that necessarily follows the rich and famous cannot insulate them from prosecution," Steele wrote.

A spokesman for Cosby did not respond to a request for comment Thursday evening.

Cosby, 79, faces three counts of aggravated indecent assault for allegedly drugging and molesting Andrea Constand in his Cheltenham home in 2004.

His trial is scheduled for June, although the judge has indicated he could hold it before then.