Bill Cosby Freed on $1M Bail, Awaits Trial

Bill Cosby appeared in a Pennsylvania court on Wednesday to be arraigned on charges of aggravated indecent assault, and was later released after posting $1 million bail, The Associated Press reports.

Cosby's passport was confiscated and the 78-year-old comedian now awaits trial on charges that he sexually assaulted a Temple University employee in 2004. He faces up to 10 years in prison and a $25,000 fine.

Cosby did not enter a plea or make public comment on Wednesday, according to the AP, whose report described him as "at ease, laughing and chatting with his attorneys" during the court appearance.

Arrest warrant issued for Bill Cosby

Andrea Constand, who was working as the manager of the women's basketball team at Temple in 2004, claims that Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted her at his home that year. (Cosby acknowledges having a sexual encounter with Constand, but says it was consensual.) After authorities declined to prosecute Cosby in 2005, Constand filed a civil suit against him that was settled confidentially in 2006. Her criminal case was reopened this summer, and the statute of limitations on the alleged crime was set to expire next month.

Though more than 50 women have come forward accusing Cosby of sexual abuse, this is the first time he has been officially charged. The statute of limitations on most of the other alleged crimes has expired; however, one accusation from 2008 is currently under investigation. It's up to a judge whether Cosby's other accusers will be allowed to testify during his trial.