Bill Cosby spent his first night in prison alone, in a single cell near the infirmary, as he began his three-to-10-year sentence for sexual assault.
Corrections officials announced yesterday that Cosby, now known as Inmate No. NN7687 will serve his sentence at SCI Phoenix, a new state prison about 20 miles from the gated estate where a jury concluded he drugged and molested a woman in 2004.
The $400 million lockup opened two months ago and can hold 3,830 inmates.
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Cosby will meet with prison medical staff, psychologists and others as the staff assesses his needs.
Under prison policy, the 81-year-old comedian will be allowed phone calls and visits and will get a chance to exercise.
The prison’s long-term goal is to place Cosby in the general population, officials said.
“We are taking all of the necessary precautions to ensure Mr. Cosby’s safety and general welfare in our institution,” Corrections Secretary John Wetzel said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Cosby’s star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame will not be removed despite him being jailed for sexual assault, the organisation in charge of the LA tourist attraction has confirmed.
The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce said that while it is “regrettable” when celebrities’ personal lives do not live up to “public standards and expectations”, the stars mark professional achievements and are permanent fixtures.
Known to millions as “America’s Dad” for his role in The Cosby Show, the comedian and actor saw his star unveiled on Hollywood Boulevard in 1977.
Following his sentencing on Tuesday, a spokeswoman for the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce said it would remain in place.
“The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historical record of entertainment figures past and present,” the spokeswoman said.
”Once installed, the stars become part of the historic fabric of the Walk of Fame, a “designated historic cultural landmark”, and are intended to be permanent.
“The stars only commemorate the recipient’s professional accomplishments. It is regrettable when the personal lives of inductees do not measure up to public standards and expectations; however, the Hollywood Chamber Of Commerce does not remove stars from the Walk Of Fame.”
As Cosby began adjusting to life behind bars, his family and publicists vowed he’ll appeal his conviction on three felony sexual assault counts after the first celebrity trial of the #MeToo era.