Russell Brand sentenced to ten years and six months in prison, Digi Mart USA News (London, England): Former Hollywood star Russell Brand, 51, was sentenced to ten years and six months in prison on Monday by Judge Joel Bennathan, 65, at a court in London. The former British entertainment figure, once one of the most prominent stars in the country, was convicted of crimes against women.
Judge Bennathan addressed Brand directly before the sentence was announced. “About 20 years ago, you, Russell Brand, became famous.
And you became a sexual predator,” the judge said. He said he had to sentence Brand for crimes committed since then, including rape and sexual coercion between 2004 and 2009.
Brand must serve at least seven years and two months before he can be considered for release, because he cannot be freed after serving half of his sentence given the seriousness of the offenses. He will have to serve two-thirds of the term before he can be released.
Brand was convicted last Thursday of one count of rape and three counts of sexual coercion or sexual assault. The jury acquitted him of two further rape allegations and an allegation of attempted indecent coercion.
He was taken into pretrial custody immediately after the verdict and has been held since then, initially at Wandsworth Prison in London. The prison service will decide where he serves the sentence, based on available capacity.
A victim gave a statement from behind a protective screen. “I wanted to describe how this crime changed my life.
I felt dirty and I was ashamed. And that has been the case for 20 years,” she said.
“The last three years have been bad.” A prosecutor read victim impact statements describing how the attacks changed their lives permanently. The prosecutor told the judge that the sentence for rape is life imprisonment.
Brand’s lawyer asked the judge for leniency. Brand denied all criminal charges during the trial.
He admitted he had once been “obsessed with sex” and had used his fame to meet women, but insisted he never forced a woman into sexual acts. The jury found him guilty on four of seven counts after a trial lasting about four weeks.
Brand’s wife, Laura, attended the court in support of her husband.
