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Cellphones provoke courtroom crackdown in Cosby trial

Nationally-renowned attorney Gloria Allred and a reporter for NBC10 were kicked out of the courtroom for violating the ban on cellphone use.

Lawyer Gloria Allred and NBC10 reporter Brian X. McCrone were disciplined Wednesday for cell phone use during the Bill Cosby sex-assault trial.
Lawyer Gloria Allred and NBC10 reporter Brian X. McCrone were disciplined Wednesday for cell phone use during the Bill Cosby sex-assault trial.Read moreSTAFF

The judge presiding over Bill Cosby's sexual-assault trial in Norristown cracked down on court decorum rules this week, revoking a local reporter's credentials and kicking renowned attorney Gloria Allred out of the courtroom for violating the ban on cellphones.

NBC10 reporter Brian X. McCrone, 37, was barred from covering the remainder of the trial Tuesday after court officials caught him sending text messages while court was in session.

"One of our reporters unfortunately forgot to turn off his cellphone during the Cosby trial proceedings and answered a text during the trial," a station spokesperson said. "Our reporter apologized to the court and the credential has been revoked."

McCrone, a former Philly.com reporter, has been writing and editing for the TV station's website, NBCPhiladelphia.com, since 2016.  He did not return a request for comment.

Allred then caused a stir Wednesday afternoon when her cellphone rang toward the end of testimony by the accuser, Andrea Constand. Allred represents several other women who have accused Cosby of sexual assault, but is not formally involved in the criminal case.

She was immediately asked to leave the courtroom, but was permitted reentry after a break.

Allred told the Associated Press that she was baffled by the incident, thinking her cellphone was turned off. She said she asked people outside the courtroom to help her make sure it was off before she returned.

Court officials said that because Allred's phone was out of sight when it rang, she was not barred from attending the remainder of the trial and would not be cited.

This article contains information from the Associated Press.