The actor has been involved in years of legal battles | Photo: YouTube/HuffPost
A Pennsylvania judge today ruled Bill Cosby must classify himself as a ‘sexually violent predator’. He also received a 3-10 year prison sentence.
Currently, Cosby, 81, is facing sentencing in Montgomery County for the rape of Andrea Constand. He was found guilty in April. Constand came out as a lesbian during litigation.
The classification as a sexual predator means he must register for the remainder of his life and undergo lifetime mandatory sex offender counseling with a treatment provider. Authorities must also alert the community that a ‘sexually violent predator’ lives in the area.
On the first day of the hearing (24 September), psychologist Kristen Dudley testified Cosby shows signs of a mental disorder.
‘The behaviors are beyond their controls, so they are urged to act on it. He is likely to reoffend,’ she said in court.
What else happened?
Today (25 September), Cosby received a 3-10 year sentence in state prison.
Bill Cosby sentenced to 3 to 10 years in state prison.
— Montgomery County DA (@MontcopaDA) September 25, 2018
Originally, Cosby faced up to 30 years in prison after a jury found him guilty of all three counts of aggravated indecent assault against Constand.
When the prosecutors and defense attorneys merged the three counts to one, his maximum sentencing dropped to 10 years.
Prosecutors asked for 5-10 years, but Cosby’s defense team asked for house arrest, citing his old age and impairments, such as blindness.
Over the past few years, dozens of women came forward accusing Cosby of sexual assault and more.
In her victim statement, Constand wrote: ‘When the sexual assault happened, I was a young woman brimming with confidence and looking forward to a future bright with possibilities. Now, almost 15 years later, I’m a middle-aged woman who’s been stuck in a holding pattern for most of her adult life, unable to heal fully or to move forward.’
According to some reports, when Cosby’s sentencing came down, a woman in the courtroom pumped her fist into the air and whispered: ‘Yesss!’
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