Bill Cosby victim Andrea Constand opened up about her assault for the first time in a powerful interview

On April 26th, after more than 60 women came forward against him, Bill Cosby was convicted of aggravated indecent assault. The comedian faces up to 30 years in prison for these crimes, which were first brought to light by Andrea Constand, a woman who testified that Cosby drugged and raped her in 2004. And now, Constand is speaking out about the experience in her first TV interview.

In an interview with Kate Snow, which will air June 1st on Dateline, Constand described what happened that night in 2004 when she went to Cosby’s apartment for career advice. In a preview of the interview, Constand recalled that the comedian offered her three blue pills, and said they would help her relax.

"They're your friends. Just put 'em down," she said he told her.

Constand told Snow that she took the pills because she trusted Cosby. After 30 minutes, she began to slur her words and could no longer walk. That’s when she said that he took her to the couch and assaulted her.

"My mind is saying, ‘Move your hands. Kick. Can you do anything? Why is this person doing this?’ And me not being able to react in any specific way," she said. "So I was limp. I was a limp noodle."

She said she drifted in and out of consciousness, and when she came to, Cosby fixed her breakfast. Afterward, she drove home, crying in the shower before going to work.

At the time of her assault, Constand was working at Temple University as the director of operations for the women’s basketball program. Cosby, an alum, had been mentoring her while she considered changing careers. Constand didn’t tell anyone about the assault for a year, but brought a civil suit against Cosby in 2005. The comedian’s deposition from that suit was instrumental in bringing criminal charges against him in 2017. Cosby’s initial trial ended in a hung jury, leading to the most recent retrial in April.

Constand’s Dateline episode, titled “Bringing Down Bill Cosby: Andrea Constand Speaks,” will also feature interviews with her mother, Gianna, and four of Cosby’s other accusers.

Reliving past assault can be traumatic, and we applaud Constand’s bravery in coming forward. We’ll be keeping our eyes peeled for the full interview on June 1st.