lawsuit, this one filed by Linda Ridgway-Whitedeer, who accused the disgraced actor of forcing her to perform oral sex on him during an audition in 1971., first accusing him of assault in 2015. This is the first time, however, that Ridgway-Whitedeer has taken legal action against Cosby, filing her lawsuit under a California law passed last year that allows adult sexual assault survivors to take alleged abusers to court no matter how long ago the incident occurred.
Along with suing Cosby, Ridgway-Whitedeer named the prominent talent agency William Morris Endeavor as a co-defendant. At the time of the alleged assault, both Cosby and Ridgway-Whitedeer were William Morris clients, and Ridgway-Whitedeer claims the agency “knew, or should have had knowledge of [Cosby’s] repeated ads of sexual assault.”
In a statement, Ridgway-Whitedeer’s lawyer, Jeff Anderson, said: “There are two levels of betrayal at play here that put Linda in Cosby’s clutches. The first is Cosby’s power to summon any young, vulnerable actress with promises of a career and opportunities. But he didn’t give these women jobs or opportunities in the entertainment industry. He sexually assaulted them. The second layer of betrayal is the William Morris Agency.