Judge Rules That Bill Cosby Is a “Sexually Violent Predator”

Status means Cosby must undergo counseling for life and appear on the sex offenders' registry.

bill cosby
Bill Cosby walks after it was announced a verdict is in at the Montgomery County Courthouse for day fourteen of his sexual assault retrial on April 26, 2018 in Norristown, Pennsylvania. (Mark Makela/Getty Images)
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Bill Cosby has been deemed a “sexually violent predator” by a Pennsylvania judge

That designation means the disgraced actor must undergo counseling for the rest of his life and appear on the sex offenders’ registry.

A judge made the ruling Tuesday — ahead of sentencing the 81-year-old, who has been convicted of drugging and molesting a woman at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004. In April, Cosby was found guilty of three counts of sexual assault against Andrea Constand for the crime.

According to BBC, Tuesday’s classification means that he will need to register with state police, as well as notify any community he lives in of his sex offender status, on top of going to counseling for life.

Neighbors, childhood centers and schools will all be notified of his whereabouts.

Cosby’s two-day hearing at Montgomery County Courthouse in Pennsylvania began on Monday with a legal debate over the violent predator label. Cosby’s defense team had argued the state’s sex offender law was too severe given Cosby’s age and the fact that he is legally blind. On Monday, psychologist Kristen Dudley testified that Cosby showed signs of a mental disorder and was likely to reoffend if given the opportunity.

Cosby faces a maximum of 10 years in prison. There is no mandatory minimum for his convictions.

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