The panel of appeals court judges was decidedly unimpressed with Bill Cosby’s defense attorneys as they made their arguments yesterday in an effort to overturn the 82-year-old’s conviction.
This latest appeal is Cosby’s last that he’s entitled to in Pennsylvania. If his conviction is upheld, the ailing and blind sexual predator could end up in prison until the day he dies.
Bill Cosby’s sentence
On April 26, 2018, Bill Cosby was sentenced to three-to-10 years after being found guilty on three counts of the sexual assault of Andrea Constand.
In January 2004, Cosby gave Constand a date rape drug and proceeded to sexually violate her against her will.
Dozens of women have accused the man formerly known as “America’s dad” of drugging and raping them while they were unconscious. Accusations date back to the 1960s and fall outside of the statute of limitations.
(RELATED: Bill Cosby – The First Celebrity to Face Sentencing in the #MeToo Era)
Cosby appeals his conviction
Cosby’s two female attorneys argued the case’s trial judge should not have allowed five other accusers to take the stand against him. Cosby was never charged in their cases because too much time had passed.
However, the five female accusers were heard during the trial as proof of a pattern of past bad behavior.
Cosby attorney Kristen Weisenberger argued the women were not alike enough in age or occupation to prove a pattern of victimology.
“He gave them drugs and then he had sex with them. That’s the pattern, is it not?” Judge John Bender responded, pointedly.
The rest of the hour-long hearing reportedly didn’t get any better.
According to reports, the three-judge panel looked skeptical — with moments of exasperation and shrugging — throughout the proceeding.
Settlement agreement
Cosby’s attorney’s also argued to the two female and one male judges that the trial judge should have upheld a prior settlement agreement.
Attorneys for Andrea Constand and Bill Cosby came to a settlement agreement in lieu of Cosby standing trial.
Cosby paid Constand around $3.4 million. However, prosecutors make the final decision on what cases to pursue and Cosby’s number was up. Prosecutors tried Cosby not once, but twice, after an initial mistrial.
The settlement agreement was ultimately not upheld.
If Cosby’s conviction is upheld in this latest appeal, it’s unlikely his case will be heard again. The appeals court in Pennsylvania is known for rarely overturning convictions.
Cosby is currently serving out his sentence at the State Correctional Institution – Phoenix in Skippack Township, Pennsylvania.
(RELATED: Former Inmates Reveal What Cosby Is Really Like in Prison)
Regardless of whether Bill Cosby is released early or not, his star and memory will forever be tarnished because of his actions.
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