British actor and 'comedian' Russell Brand has been sentenced to over ten years in prison after he was found guilty of rape and multiple cases of sexual assault spanning from 1999 to 2009.The 51-year-old actor was found guilty last week and on Monday was sentenced to nine years in prison for the rape charge and 35 months for the three sexual assaults. He will be made to serve the sentences concurrently.Judge Joel Bennathan said that Brand believed that "fame meant you could act how you liked, when you liked," as he read the sentence out to the former movie star.Bennathan also noted Brand's "casual and arrogant disregard" for women denying his advances or saying "no" to him.He was joined in court by his wife, 39-year-old Laura Gallacher, who stood as a character witness for her husband, calling him a "caring, kind, and a wonderful father."Brand was found guilty of anally raping a then 21-year-old woman in 2009 after meeting her at a show in London.He was initially accused of three counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault, and one count of attempted indecent assault. He was acquitted on two of the rape charges and the attempted indecent assault but found guilty on the other charges.Brand rose to stardom after his appearances in many notable early-2000s comedy movies such as Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Get Him to the Greek, and the 2011 reboot of Arthur.Despite his conviction, Brand still maintains his innocence and has repeatedly denied all the charges laid against him.
