Stephen Hopkins finally has a lawyer, albeit three months after he was convicted of sexually assaulting a teenage girl in her Cowan Heights home.

The trial is now at the sentencing stage, where the Crown is seeking to have the registered sex offender declared a dangerous offender.

That comes with a potential life sentence, prompting Hopkins to finally reach out and accept a Legal Aid lawyer.

Justice Donald Burrage, who has urged him to get a lawyer from day one, called it an “excellent and most desirable development.”

A psychiatrist’s report, which is due next week, will go a long way toward determining Hopkins’ fate.

It will be shared with the Crown, defence and judge, before all parties return to court for next steps on October 5.