THE judge in Bill Cosby’s sexual assault retrial has given the defence a huge lift with two rulings that could bolster the 80-year-old comedian’s efforts to show his accuser made up the allegations against him in hopes of a big payday.

In a pre-trial ruling that could undermine Cosby’s accuser Andrea Constand, Judge Steven O’Neill said the defence can call a witness who says Constand talked about framing a celebrity before she lodged sexual abuse allegations against Cosby in 2005.

The witness, Marguerite Jackson, claims Constand once said she could lie about being sexually assaulted by a celebrity, then collect a lot of money.

Constand alleges Cosby drugged her and then assaulted her in 2004 at his home outside Philadelphia.

Prosecutors allege Constand is just one in a line of women who Cosby assaulted after drugging them. More than 50 women have accused Cosby of sexual assault.

Last month, Judge O’Neill agreed to allow five of them to testify.

Because many of the allegations fall outside the statute of limitations for assault cases, Constand’s case is the only one that resulted in charges against Cosby.

Among them is model and reality TV personality Janice Dickinson, who has reportedly been subpoenaed to testify at the second trial.

At the first trial, only one other woman was allowed to testify alongside Constand.

The judge also helped Cosby’s defence case by ruling jurors can hear how much Cosby ultimately paid his accuser in a 2006 civil settlement.

In pre-trial motions, Cosby’s high-powered lawyer Tom Mesereau said he wanted to include evidence that would show “just how greedy this person was” in 2006, when Constand and Cosby settled a civil claim.

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Meanwhile, the sceptre of the #MeToo movement hangs over the retrial.

While the Cosby allegations — dozens of women publicly sharing claims of sexual misconduct by Cosby — saw his image of America’s favourite dad in tatters, they largely predated the #MeToo movement sparked by film guru Harvey Weinstein’s downfall last year.

The idea that celebrities with good reputations don’t harm others “has been substantially deflated” by the #MeToo movement, Fordham Law associate professor James Cohen told CNN.

Seven jurors have been chosen so far for the Cosby retrial.

In what’s seen as a sign of the challenge to find an impartial jury, 82 of 119 potential jurors questioned by the judge said they already had an opinion about Cosby’s guilt or innocence.

When questioned on what they knew about the case, their views on the #MeToo movement, celebrity sexual assaults and whether they could remain impartial, all but 10 potential jurors knew some facts of the case. All but one had heard about the #MeToo movement and celebrity sexual assaults.

All but about 20 proepstetive jurors on Tuesday begged off the case, saying it would be a hardship to serve.

Two of the people who made the cut said they had no knowledge of the Cosby case. Five of the jurors picked so far are white and two are black, with four men and three women.

Judge O’Neill’s Jackson witness ruling reverses his decision to block her from testifying at the first trial last year, which ended in a hung jury.

At the time, the judge ruled Jackson’s testimony would be hearsay after Constand, a former Temple University women’s basketball administrator, testified she didn’t know the woman.

But since then, prosecutors have told Cosby’s lawyers that Constand had modified her statement to acknowledge she “recalls a Margo.”

Jackson has said that she and Constand worked closely together, had been friends and had shared hotel rooms several times.

She has said Constand once commented to her about setting up a “high-profile person” and filing a claim for damages.

Constand’s lawyer says Jackson isn’t telling the truth.

Judge O’Neill didn’t explain the reasoning behind his change of heart on Tuesday but issued one caveat, saying he could revisit the issue of Jackson’s testimony after Constand takes the stand.

Cosby, has pleaded not guilty to all three counts of aggravated indecent assault.

Opening statements in his retrial on those charges are scheduled for April 9.