At Bill Cosby Trial, Accuser’s Mother Takes the Stand With Fiery Testimony

Andrea Constand stepped down from the stand after two days and nearly eight hours of testimony during the Bill Cosby criminal trial and was immediately followed by her mother, Gianna Constand.

Gianna Constand was combative and tearful as she talked about what her daughter told her the famous TV star did more than 13 years ago, according to reporters in the courthouse.

“He betrayed her,” Gianna Constand told the jury.

Gianna Constand cried for nearly a minute when asked why she had been aggressive with Cosby when she confronted him by phone from her Canadian home. She testified that Cosby and her daughter had been close, that Andrea viewed Cosby like a father-figure, who ultimately betrayed her trust.

It was another dramatic point in the criminal trial in Norristown, Pennsylvania, which started Monday.

Constand has accused Cosby of drugging and sexually assaulting her at his Philadelphia home in 2004. He claims the interaction was consensual, and that the pills he gave her were Benadryl.

Andrea Constand previously testified that she did not tell her mother about what allegedly happened until nearly a year later. Gianna Constand testified that after Andrea told her about the incident, Gianna immediately called Cosby and they spoke for two hours.

She also testified that Cosby described his encounter with her daughter during that phone call, addressing Gianna Constand as “mom.”

“He said, ‘Don’t worry, mom, there was no penetration, just digital penetration,’ ” she said, as reported in USA Today.  “He said to me, ‘And, mom, she even had an orgasm.’”

Gianna Constand turned combative during the cross examination when pressed about why she hid the fact that she recorded a second call with Cosby.

“It doesn’t matter,” Gianna Constand answered. She left the stand soon after.

Cosby stands accused of three counts of aggravated indecent assault against Andrea Constand, each punishable by up to 10 years in prison. She is one of nearly 60 women to accuse the former Cosby Show star of sexual assault.