Bill Cosby Gets a Big Break At Sentencing Hearing
On the first day of his sentencing hearing for sexual assault, Bill Cosby caught a huge break, as the judge announced that he will face less than one-tenth the time in prison that he could have.
He had been facing a maximum of 30 years in prison after being convicted of three counts of sexual assault of Andrea Constand, but the prosecution and defense have made a deal to merge the charges. This means that Cosby will only be sentenced for one count, which carries a maximum of 10 years. The state guidelines suggest a sentence of only 1 to 4 years in prison for one count, and the judge said that Cosby is now looking at a total sentence of only 22 to 34 months.
The prosecution asked for up to 10 years in prison nonetheless, while the defense asked for house arrest, with Cosby's lawyer arguing: "Eighty-one year old blind men are not dangerous" and suggesting that Cosby would be in great danger in prison: "How does he fight off the people who are trying to extort him, or walk to the mess hall?."
Constand and her parents both testified today about the impact the assault had on her, but the judge has barred the five other women who testified during the trial that Cosby also assaulted them from speaking during the sentencing hearing.
Cosby was met by demonstrators screaming "Rapist!" and "We believe the women!" at him as he walked into the courthouse.
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