Bill Cosby will not get out of prison early, a rep for the Department of Corrections tells Page Six. Lawyers for the disgraced comedian planned to file a petition to get him sprung from SCI Phoenix in Pennsylvania, where he is serving 3-10 years for sexual assault, over concerns about the spread of coronavirus in prisons.
Cosby’s rep Andrew Wyatt told Page Six, “We strongly feel that Mr. Cosby will be released and remanded to house arrest in the upcoming weeks. Mr. Cosby is 82 years old; Mr. Cosby has an underlying medical condition — blindness” — and cannot practice “social distancing because he has to rely on the aid of others.”
Wyatt added that Cosby, who has grappled with partially blocked arteries, is blind from glaucoma, takes medication for high blood pressure and recently had two major surgeries to prevent cardiovascular failure will not survive coronavirus behind bars.
But here’s what the DOC rep told the paper: “Based on the criteria exempting sex offenders and knowing his highly publicized case, he would not qualify.”
The rep is referring to Pennsylvania’s Gov. Tom Wolf‘s order last week to move some prisoners to other facilities or their homes to serve out their terms. One inmate in SCI has died of coronavirus as 22 others have tested positive.
