A protester who was not wearing a shirt and had the names of Bill Cosby's alleged victims written on her body launched herself at the actor on Monday
She also had the phrase 'Women's Lives Matter,' 'Cosby Rapist' and 'semen' written across her body
Cosby, 80, laughed at the woman as she jumped over the barricade and ran into his path on Monday
The woman, who has been identified as Nicolle Rochelle of Little Neck, New Jersey, was detained by sheriff's deputies and is now in custody
Rochelle, 38, appeared in four episodes of The Cosby Show as a child, playing a friend of Rudy Huxtable
By CHRIS SPARGO FOR DAILYMAIL.COM UPDATED: 18:34 EDT, 9 April 2018
Bill Cosby was accosted by a topless woman while arriving in court on Monday morning.
The woman, who has been identified as Nicolle Rochelle of Little Neck, New Jersey, jumped over a barricade and ran at the disgraced actor while he was making his way from his car into the courthouse.
Rochelle, 38, appeared on The Cosby Show as a child, appearing in four episodes of the popular sitcom as Danielle, a friend of Rudy Huxtable (played by Keshia Knight Pulliam).
Pulliam had been by Cosby's side for the first day of his trial the last time he appeared in court, but was not present for the opening statements of his retrial on Monday.
Rochelle had the words 'Women's Lives Matter' written across her body and was quickly stopped by sheriff's deputies, who put her in handcuffs and took her into custody.
Topless protester runs past Bill Cosby as he returns to court
In he goes: The trial started off on Monday with Cosby's defense hoping to get one juror dismissed after they allegedly told a potential member of the jury they had already formed an opinion on the case
Cosby's team asks for more security after topless protester
The woman also had the words 'Cosby rapist' and 'semen' written on her body, as well as the names of a number of Cosby's alleged victims.
Cosby could be seen laughing as the woman ran out in his path.
He walked into court with his spokesperson Andrew Wyatt, who was also by his side during last year's trial.
Wyatt could be seen reprimanding one of the sheriff's deputies after the woman made her way over the partition.
In that same image the woman is seen pinned down on the ground while Cosby walks by unfazed by the commotion.
Cosby is switching things up for this trial, with the disgraced actor assembling a new defense team of seven lawyers - four of whom are women.
Two of those women, Becky James and Kathleen Bliss, were added to the team as soon as pre-trial motions and meetings began last year, while the other two were very late additions.
Court records show that Cosby's team submitted two motions for admission on Saturday, March 24 at around 9pm to request that Jaya Gupta and Rachael Robinson be added to his legal line-up.
That move came in the wake of Judge Steven O'Neill ruling that five women who have accused Cosby of rape could testify at trial in addition to the plaintiff, Andrea Constand.
Cosby has pleaded not guilty to charges he drugged and molested Constand at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004.
Former Cosby Show actress protests topless at retrial
He replaces Brian McMonagle, who stepped down after the first trial ended in a hung jury and was declared a mistrial, a ruling that most legal experts agreed was the best possible outcome Cosby could hope for in the case.
There are no lawyers on Cosby's current team who were part of his defense during the first trial.
Bliss is a former federal prosecutor who served in Nevada for over two decades while James is a partner at the Los Angeles-based firm of Greenberg Gross.
That is the same firm where Gupta and Robinson are employed as associates.
'Prior to law school, Ms. Gupta received a master’s degree in Medieval English Studies at the University of Oxford,' reads Gupta's bio on the law firm's website.
'She received her undergraduate degree at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa.'
That bio also makes it clear why she was selected for the team, stating: 'Her experience includes representing individuals and entities in class actions, and in civil and criminal government investigations brought pursuant to the False Claims Act, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.'
Robinson also fills a niche in the defense team, having 'begun her legal career as an associate working with Partner Becky S. James at James & Associates, focusing primarily on appeals and white collar criminal defense' according to her bio.
He has also made some changes however, thanks to Judge Steven O'Neill ruling that the prosecution could call five accusers to the stand at trial.
That is a big increase from the first trial, where there were just two women who took the stand - plaintiff Andrea Constand and Kelly Johnson.
Constand will be taking the stand once again, and this time be joined by Janice Baker-Kinney, Janice Dickinson, Chelan lasha, Lisa-Lotte Lublin and Heidi Thomas.
Prosecutors had been hoping to have 13 women testify alongside Constand to speak to a pattern of behavior exhibited by the defendant.
Cosby, 80, has been accused of drugging and raping over 40 women.
Jury selection will begin on Monday in the case and be followed by opening statements a few days later.
This trial will likely take much longer than the first, which was over in two weeks.
Cosby is switching things up for this trial, with the disgraced actor assembling a new defense team of seven lawyers - four of whom are women.
Two of those women, Becky James and Kathleen Bliss, were added to the team as soon as pre-trial motions and meetings began last year, while the other two were very late additions.
Court records show that Cosby's team submitted two motions for admission on Saturday, March 24 at around 9pm to request that Jaya Gupta and Rachael Robinson be added to his legal line-up.
That move came in the wake of Judge Steven O'Neill ruling that five women who have accused Cosby of rape could testify at trial in addition to the plaintiff, Andrea Constand.
Cosby has pleaded not guilty to charges he drugged and molested Constand at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004.
The legal team will be headed up this time by Tom Mesereau, who has defended A-list celebrities including Michael Jackson.
He replaces Brian McMonagle, who stepped down after the first trial ended in a hung jury and was declared a mistrial, a ruling that most legal experts agreed was the best possible outcome Cosby could hope for in the case.
There are no lawyers on Cosby's current team who were part of his defense during the first trial.
Bliss is a former federal prosecutor who served in Nevada for over two decades while James is a partner at the Los Angeles-based firm of Greenberg Gross.
That is the same firm where Gupta and Robinson are employed as associates.
'Prior to law school, Ms. Gupta received a master’s degree in Medieval English Studies at the University of Oxford,' reads Gupta's bio on the law firm's website.
'She received her undergraduate degree at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa.'
That bio also makes it clear why she was selected for the team, stating: 'Her experience includes representing individuals and entities in class actions, and in civil and criminal government investigations brought pursuant to the False Claims Act, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.'
Robinson also fills a niche in the defense team, having 'begun her legal career as an associate working with Partner Becky S. James at James & Associates, focusing primarily on appeals and white collar criminal defense' according to her bio.
These new lawyers will be up against the returning prosecutor in the case, Kevin Steele.He has also made some changes however, thanks to Judge Steven O'Neill ruling that the prosecution could call five accusers to the stand at trial.
That is a big increase from the first trial, where there were just two women who took the stand - plaintiff Andrea Constand and Kelly Johnson.
Constand will be taking the stand once again, and this time be joined by Janice Baker-Kinney, Janice Dickinson, Chelan lasha, Lisa-Lotte Lublin and Heidi Thomas.
Prosecutors had been hoping to have 13 women testify alongside Constand to speak to a pattern of behavior exhibited by the defendant.
Cosby, 80, has been accused of drugging and raping over 40 women.
Jury selection will begin on Monday in the case and be followed by opening statements a few days later.
This trial will likely take much longer than the first, which was over in two weeks.
The defense had initially attempted to argue that the start of the case should be pushed back because of the addition of those five prosecution witnesses earlier this month.
Judge O'Neill denied that request
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