Comedian Bill Cosby was on Thursday found guilty of three counts of sexual assault, reported The Guardian. A Pennsylvania jury convicted him of drugging and molesting an acquaintance at his home in a Philadelphia suburb in 2004.
Cosby could face up to 10 years in prison on each count but he is likely to serve them concurrently, reported CNN. He is yet to be sentenced, and is currently out on bail. Judge Steven O’Neill said Cosby should not leave his Pennsylvania home, and that he would need to be fitted with a tracking device if he left the state.
Cosby’s attorney, Tom Mesereau, said he would appeal against the verdict. “We are very disappointed by the verdict,” said Mesereau. “We don’t think Cosby’s guilty of anything and the fight is not over.”
The woman had alleged that Cosby drugged and assaulted her 14 years ago when she visited him to ask for career advice. Later, five other women also testified that he did the same with them. More than 60 women over five decades have publicly accused the Emmy award-winning actor of sexually assaulting them, reported BBC.
“We are so happy that finally we can say, women are believed,” said attorney Gloria Allred, who represents many of the women who have accused Cosby of misconduct. “And not only on #MeToo but in a court of law where they are under oath, where they testified truthfully, where they are attacked. After all is said and done, women were finally believed.”
This is the second time trials were held in the case. In June 2017, the Pennsylvania judge declared a mistrial after jurors said they were deadlocked over charges. The panel had told the judge that they were unable to reach a consensus against Cosby.
Hours after the verdict, Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, revoked the honorary degree it had awarded Cosby in 2007, reported CNN. “The university will not tolerate sexual violence, intimate partner violence, stalking or sexual harassment,” the university said in a statement. “These acts are against the law and violate our core values.”
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