During a retrial of Andrea Constand’s case against Bill Cosby, the known sexual predator was found guilty on three counts of sexual assault for drugging and raping Constand in 2004.
Judge Steven O’Neill designated Cosby a sexually violent predator, which means he must attend lifelong counseling and be listing on the sex offender registry. Today, he was sentenced 3 to 10 years in state prison. During the two-day hearing on Cosby’s sentencing decision, the judge heard from Psychologist Kristen Dudley who testified that Cosby still shows signs of “mental disorder” and she believes he would be likely to reoffend.
At the retrial in June, 2017 Constand took the stand to tell the jury how she saw Cosby as a “mentor” who “took my beautiful, healthy young spirit and crushed it. He robbed me of my health and vitality, my open nature, and my trust in myself and others.” On the night of the assault, Cosby gave Constand pills that left her frozen and unable to stop him from raping her.
The prosecution team provided reporters with a quote from Constand today: “To truly understand the impact that the sexual assault has had on my life, you have to understand the person that I was before it happened.”
Fellow Cosby victims Lili Bernard and former model Janice Dickinson were both present at Montgomery County Courthouse for the hearing and to support Constand. While over 60 women came out with accusations against Cosby in recent years, Constand was the only one who could go through the criminal justice system as the statue of limitations had not exceeded from the time of the assault.
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