Jury deliberations in the sexual assault trial of US comedian and former sitcom star Bill Cosby will go into a fifth day after the jury was again unable to come to an agreement Thursday on any of the charges.
The judge ordered the jury, of five women and seven men, to continue deliberating on Friday, according to a court statement.
Judge Steven O’Neill urged them to continue on Friday but did not set a timeframe for their further deliberations.
“While you should not hesitate to reexamine your own views or change your opinion if your opinion is erroneous, do not feel compelled to surrender your honest belief,” O’Neill wrote, according to a report in the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Should the jury be unable to agree, the trial would end in a hung jury. The prosecution would then have four months to decide on whether to seek a fresh trial with a new jury.
The 79-year-old stand-up comedian and actor could spend up to a decade in prison if convicted in the court case, which is taking place in Norristown, Pennsylvania, north-west of Philadelphia.
Prosecutors have charged him with three felony counts of aggravated indecent assault for allegedly drugging and sexually assaulting Andrea Constand at his home in 2004.
Cosby, known for his role as family man Rudy Huxtable on the 1980s hit TV series “The Cosby Show”, has pleaded not guilty, and his
lawyers argue that his sexual contact with Constand was consensual.
Norristown, Pennsylvania (dpa)
