Phylicia Rashad said that a “miscarriage of justice” has been “corrected” by way of former TV husband Bill Cosby’s overturned conviction for sexual assault and Wednesday release from prison.
On Wednesday morning, Pennsylvania’s highest court overturned the disgrace comedian’s sexual assault conviction after it found that an agreement with a previous prosecutor prevented him from being charged in the case; Cosby was released from prison two hours later.
In the interim, Rashad – who has publicly defended Cosby throughout his legal battles – took to social media in support of her onetime co-star.
“FINALLY!!!!” she tweeted in all caps. “A terrible wrong is being righted — a miscarriage of justice is corrected!”
Hours following her original tweet, Rashad added that her words of support for Cosby were “in no way intended to be insensitive” to survivors of sexual survivors. “Personally, I know from friends and family that such abuse has lifelong residual effects,” she wrote. “My heartfelt wish is for healing.”
She originally came to Cosby’s defence in a 2015 interview with Showbiz411.com. “What you’re seeing is the destruction of a legacy. And I think it’s orchestrated,” she said at the time. “I don’t know why or who’s doing it, but it’s the legacy. And it’s a legacy that is so important to the culture.”
Rashad followed up on her remarks in a televised sit-down interview with ABC News’ Linsey Davis. “He is a genius,” she said. “He is generous, he is kind, he is inclusive… What has happened is declaration in the media of guilt, without proof.”
