Bill Cosby says crowds frighten him now — airlines, trains and buses included — and the reason he gave under oath is on video.
Three never-before-seen clips of Cosby’s sworn deposition in the civil case brought by Donna Motsinger, played for jurors at the time of trial, surfaced Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, exclusively obtained by the National Enquirer. Asked in one of them whether he gets “on a plane to go anywhere,” the “Cosby Show” star, 89, responded firmly: “No.”
Asked why he no longer travels to California, Cosby said, “I am a celebrity, and due to negative publicity about me, I am afraid to be in crowds, especially on airlines, trains, buses.” The clips come from deposition video that runs more than an hour.
The testimony comes from the case that cost him $59.25 million. A civil jury in Santa Monica, Calif., found him liable on Monday, March 23, for sexually assaulting Motsinger in 1972.
Her Case Moved While Others Stalled
The trial lasted nearly two weeks, and jurors deliberated about two days before awarding $17.5 million in past damages and $1.75 million for future damages covering mental suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, inconvenience, grief, anxiety, humiliation and emotional distress. In a second phase that afternoon, they tacked on $40 million in punitive damages.
Motsinger, 85, was a server at a restaurant in Sausalito, Calif., and said in her 2023 lawsuit that Cosby invited her to his stand-up show at a theater in nearby San Carlos. Both were in their 30s. She said he gave her wine and two pills she believed were aspirin, and that she went in and out of consciousness as two men put her into a limousine.
Her suit moved through the California courts in about two and a half years from filing to verdict, while other lawsuits against Cosby stalled. He did not testify. Witnesses included Andrea Constand, the Temple University sports administrator he was convicted of sexually assaulting in a Pennsylvania criminal court in 2018, before the state Supreme Court threw out that verdict and he was freed after serving nearly three years of a three- to 10-year sentence.
Cosby’s attorney, Jennifer Bonjean, said in an email after the initial award that the defense was disappointed and fully intends to appeal. At least 60 women have accused Cosby of rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment, and he has denied all of it.
Too Sick to Be Deposed
His health has since become its own courtroom fight. Cosby’s legal team filed documents in July claiming he was too ill to sit for a deposition in a separate civil lawsuit brought by several women, and said June dates collapsed because his male assistant — who helps him with basic needs — was not available. His lawyer said in July that he is not in good health.
Lawyers for the women told the court he was scheduled to be deposed Sept. 22 through Sept. 24 and that his side canceled on Sept. 21, the third set of dates called off after instances in April and June. They asked the judge for sanctions, or at minimum an order blocking him from testifying.
Now Comes the Collection Fight
Los Angeles judge Bradley S. Phillips rejected Cosby’s motion for a new trial on May 29, leaving the verdict and the full award standing. Cosby had described the sum as excessive, and his lawyers argued in April that the $40 million in punitive damages did nothing to deter future conduct, calling him an isolated 88-year-old man with no sight.
Court papers obtained in October show he was served a writ of execution, the tool used to force payment of a money judgment — typically by seizing and selling a debtor’s non-exempt property or garnishing their funds. He owes Motsinger $59.25 million plus more than $3.3 million in accrued interest and fees. He appeared to go off the grid after the court ordered the payment.
“I finally got justice, and I hope I get some money,” Motsinger told the tabloid. Her lawyer, Jesse Creed of Panish Shea Ravipudi, said his team will go “to the ends of the earth to get the money,” and warned that anyone who has taken money from Cosby could face liability for fraudulent transfer.