Prosecutors in the US have charged comedian Bill Cosby with aggravated indecent assault over an alleged incident in 2004.
It is the first time Mr Cosby, 78, has been charged with any offence after months of accusations.
Andrea Constand says she was drugged then assaulted at the Philadelphia home of the former US television star.
Dozens of women have accused him of sexual assault, dating back to the 1970s, but he has denied wrongdoing.
Earlier this month he opened a lawsuit against seven of the women, accusing them of defamation.
He arrived at court to be formally charged but said nothing as he walked into the building.
Comedian Bill Cosby was charged on Wednesday with sexually assaulting a woman in 2004 after plying her with drugs and alcohol, marking the first criminal case against a once-beloved performer whose father-figure persona was already left tattered by dozens of misconduct allegations.
It is the second time there has been an investigation into Ms Constand's complaint against the actor, who won acclaim for playing a family doctor and model father in The Cosby Show.
In 2005, after no charges were brought when she first made the accusation, she sued him and settled for an undisclosed sum.
He has previously said under oath he had a consensual sexual encounter with her.
Mr Cosby befriended Ms Constand through her job at Temple University and she came to think of him as "a mentor and a friend" before he allegedly made two sexual advances that were rejected, said prosecutors.
Documents from her lawsuit against the star were sealed until this summer, when damaging testimony was revealed as more women came forward.
The 12-year statute of limitations was only days away from expiring, in January 2016.
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