Bill Cosby home from prison after court reverses assault conviction

Bill Cosby was freed from prison and returned home on Wednesday, less than two hours after Pennsylvania's highest court overturned his sexual assault conviction, saying he never should have faced charges after striking a non-prosecution deal with a previous district attorney more than 15 years ago.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued its split decision after Cosby had served more than two years of a three- to 10-year sentence following his 2018 conviction, prompting outrage from sexual assault victims and their advocates.

The 83-year-old actor and comedian was released from a state prison in Pennsylvania just before 2:30 pm (1830 GMT), a corrections department spokesperson said.

Around an hour later, he arrived at his stately stone mansion in Elkins Park, a Philadelphia suburb, before making a brief appearance alongside his lawyers in front of a gaggle of cameras late in the afternoon.

A frail-looking Cosby smiled and nodded when asked if he was happy to be home but did not speak as reporters shouted questions. Later, Cosby posted a statement to his Twitter account, thanking his supporters and saying, "I have never changed my stance nor my story. I have always maintained my innocence."

Cosby is best known for his role as the lovable husband and father in the 1980s television comedy series The Cosby Show, earning him the nickname "America's Dad."

But his family-friendly reputation was shattered after more than 50 women accused him of multiple assaults over nearly five decades. His conviction was seen as a watershed moment in the #MeToo movement that brought forth an array of allegations against powerful men in Hollywood and beyond.

Cosby was found guilty of drugging and molesting Andrea Constand, an employee at his alma mater Temple University, in his home in 2004. Constand's allegations were the only ones against Cosby that were not too old to allow for criminal charges.

The court's decision expressly barred prosecutors from retrying Cosby.

In a statement, Constand and her attorneys said they were not only disappointed in the ruling but concerned it could dissuade other victims from seeking justice.

"Once again, we remain grateful to those women who came forward to tell their stories," they said.

Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele, who charged Cosby in 2015, noted a jury found Cosby guilty and that Wednesday's decision was not based on the facts of the case.

"My hope is that this decision will not dampen the reporting of sexual assaults by victims," he said in a statement. "We still believe that no one is above the law - including those who are rich, famous and powerful."

Reaction was swift, with many women involved in the #MeToo movement expressing horror at the decision.

"THIS is why women do not come forward," writer E. Jean Carroll, who has accused former President Donald Trump of raping her in the 1990s, wrote on Twitter. Trump has denied her claim.

But Phylicia Rashad, Cosby's co-star on The Cosby Show, celebrated the ruling for correcting "a miscarriage of justice".