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Comedian Bill Cosby has been sentenced to three to 10 years in state prison for sexual assault.<\/p>\n
Cosby, 81, has also been categorised as a sexually violent predator, meaning he must undergo counselling for life and be listed on the sex offender registry.<\/p>\n
The actor declined to make a statement when a judge gave him the opportunity.<\/p>\n
At a retrial in April,\u00a0Cosby was found guilty of three counts of sexual assault\u00a0for drugging and molesting Andrea Constand in 2004.<\/p>\n
Ahead of the sentence, Judge Steven O\u2019Neill designated Cosby a sexually violent predator, despite the defence\u2019s argument that Cosby\u2019s age and blindness mean he is not a threat.<\/p>\n
Tuesday\u2019s classification means he will need to register with state police and notify any community he lives in of his sex offender status, as well as undergo mandatory counselling for life.<\/p>\n
Neighbours, childcare centres and schools will have be notified of the whereabouts of the entertainer once known as America\u2019s Dad.<\/p>\n
The actor\u2019s defence team had argued the state\u2019s sex offender law was too severe given Cosby\u2019s age and the fact that he is legally blind.<\/p>\n
The disgraced comedian\u2019s two-day hearing at Montgomery County Courthouse in Pennsylvania began on Monday with legal debate over the violent predator label.<\/p>\n
Psychologist Kristen Dudley testified on Monday that Cosby showed signs of a mental disorder and was likely to reoffend.<\/p>\n
In addition to the label, Cosby still faces a maximum prison term of 10 years after an agreement between prosecutors and his defence team, but there is no mandatory minimum for the convictions.<\/p>\n
The Montgomery County District Attorney, Kevin Steele, called for five to 10 years in jail for aggravated indecent assault.<\/p>\n
Cosby\u2019s defence is pushing instead for house arrest.<\/p>\n
In June 2017, Ms Constand described how Cosby, whom she viewed as a \u201cmentor\u201d, gave her pills that left her \u201cfrozen\u201d and unable to stop his assault.<\/p>\n
In Ms Constand\u2019s impact statement, provided to reporters by the prosecution team on Tuesday, she said: \u201cTo 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.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Constand wrote that she stopped eating, sleeping and socialising in the wake of the assault. She said she had been a \u201cyoung woman brimming with confidence\u201d before Cosby took that from her.<\/p>\n
\u201cBill Cosby 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.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lili Bernard and former model Janice Dickinson \u2013 both Cosby accusers present at the hearing \u2013 tweeted on Tuesday: \u201cMay justice be served! #MeToo\u201d.<\/p>\n
Cosby\u2019s wife, Camille, has not been present at the sentencing.<\/p>\n
The comedian was arrested in 2015 and\u00a0a deadlocked jury resulted in a mistrial\u00a0in June 2017.<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s retrial occurred amid the #MeToo movement that has seen people worldwide come forward to share stories of sexual harassment and assault.<\/p>\n
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