Denver Broncos cornerback Perrish Cox has pleaded not guilty to sexual assault charges that carry a maximum punishment of life in prison.
He appeared Monday in Castle Rock, which is in suburban Douglas County south of Denver. His attorney entered Cox's plea during the hearing. The judge set an Oct. 18 trial date.
Cox is charged with one count of sexual assault while the victim was physically helpless and one count of sexual assault while the victim was incapable of determining the nature of the conduct.
Court documents say the alleged assault happened on Sept. 6. He was arrested Dec. 9 and is free on bond.
Details of the charges remain under seal at the request of prosecutors and Cox's defense attorney, which is being contested by the media.
Cox attorney Harvey A. Steinberg waived his client's right to a preliminary hearing in March, after a judge ruled that it should be public. Steinberg argued at the time that the public had no constitutional right to court proceedings leading up to trials.
Steve Zansberg, an attorney representing The Associated Press, The Denver Post and The New York Times, disagreed, calling closing such a hearing in Colorado unprecedented, noting that a judge in a sexual-assault case involving Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant didn't approve of a similar request. Charges against Bryant were later dropped.
"There's no reason in logic and in law to treat this case differently ... merely because the defendant is a professional athlete," Zansberg argued in court on March 10.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
