Bill Cosby’s public defenders have not been numerous of late, but they have included some serious, credible people like Whoopi Goldberg, Ben Vereen and, most recently, Phylicia Rashad—his wife on television for more than a decade—who expressed her full support for him as he confronted accusations that he was a serial sexual predator.

In an online interview on January 6, Ms. Rashad made a point of mentioning that her faith in Mr. Cosby was bolstered by the unflinching loyalty of his actual wife, Camille O. Cosby.

“This is a tough woman, a smart woman,” she said. “She’s no pushover.”