His lawyers says it shows he's innocent

One of the women who accused Bill Cosby of sexually assaulting her in 1965 has dropped a defamation case against the comedian.

The shock decision came just a day after the star's lawyers failed in a bid to have Kristina Ruehli's case dismissed.

Court papers did not say why she was withdrawing the case, but the Washington Post reports her saying that she had accomplished her goal of drawing attention to Cosby’s alleged behaviour.

However Cosby's lawyers say that her dropping the case was proof of the 78-year-old comic's innocence.

The star's reputation has been destroyed after more than 50 women claimed he assaulted them, often after plying them with drugs and alcohol. Most of the original cases are too old to be bought to court, so several accusers have sued for defamation after Cosby or his lawyers accused them of lying.

Cosby – who has always strongly denied all the accusation – also faces one criminal prosecution in Pennsylvania.

Published: 25 Jun 2016