US prosecutors have declined to charge Bill Cosby over allegations he sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl in the Playboy Mansion in 1974.
About 20 women have accused the 77-year-old Emmy and Golden Globe winner of sexual assault or rape in alleged incidents dating mostly from decades ago, but so far only former Playboy hostess Judy Huth has taken legal action.
Prosecutors cited the statute of limitations - which limits how long legal action can be taken after an alleged crime - in declining to pursue the case brought by Huth earlier this month.
"Given that 40 years have passed since the alleged incident, prosecution (on a misdemeanour count)... is declined due to the expiration of the statute of limitations," wrote Deputy District Attorney Victor Rodriguez.
"Even if there was an applicable ... charge, the statute of limitations that existed in 1974 for felony sex crimes was three years. Therefore prosecution today for any potential felony sex crime from 1974 would also be barred."
Celebrity lawyer Gloria Allred, representing Huth, did not immediately respond to a request for reaction to the prosecutor's decision.
Cosby is famous for his role in The Cosby Show, the popular family sitcom that aired in the 1980s and 1990s.
In her lawsuit, Huth said she and a friend met Cosby on the set of a film being shot in San Marino, northeast of downtown Los Angeles.
The actor invited them to his tennis club the following Saturday. When they got there he allegedly gave them alcohol, they played billiards, then they went to the Playboy Mansion, Hugh Hefner's infamous home near Beverly Hills.
At one point she needed to use the bathroom, and Cosby directed her to a lavatory within a bedroom suite.
"When (Huth) emerged from the bathroom, she found Cosby sitting on the bed. He asked her to sit beside him," said the lawsuit, which detailed the sex assault accusations against Cosby.
Cosby's 38-year-old daughter Evin released a short statement on Tuesday, telling Access Hollywood: "He is the FATHER you thought you knew. The Cosby Show was my today's tv reality show.
"Thank you. That's all I would like to say :)," she added.
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