After the jury announced the guilty verdict on Thursday against Bill Cosby, the TV icon shouted at the prosecutor in the courtroom.
The 80-year-old comedian’s outburst, which happened after the jury was dismissed, came in response to Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, District Attorney Kevin Steele’s argument that Cosby’s $1 million bail should be revoked, because, Steele said, Cosby might flee anywhere in the world.
Steele said Cosby had a private plane and that no dollar amount would be able to ensure his appearance.
Cosby stood up at one point and yelled at Steele: “He doesn’t have a private plane, you asshole.”
Judge Steven O’Neill did not revoke the bail, and cited Cosby’s age and his appearance at every hearing for the past 2½ years as reasons.
“I’m not simply going to lock him up right now,” O’Neill said.
“You are making a very big deal of something where there is a very high bail and he has appeared at every appearance,” O’Neill told Steele.
The judge said Cosby should not leave his Pennsylvania home or the state. O’Neill also ordered that arrangements be made for a GPS tracking device for Cosby.
The case against Cosby centered on testimony from accuser Andrea Constand, a former employee with Temple University women’s basketball team. She testified that Cosby, a powerful trustee at Temple, drugged her and sexually assaulted her during a January 2004 visit to his home in a Philadelphia suburb, where she went to ask for career advice.
A jury found Cosby guilty of three counts of aggravated indecent assault for drugging and sexually assaulting Constand.
Cosby faces up to 10 years in prison on each count, but would likely serve them concurrently. A sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.