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On Wednesday, April 13, Jerry Maguire star Cuba Gooding Jr. pleaded guilty to the charges of “forcible touching” from four years ago. He reportedly made a plea deal with the prosecutors to avoid going to prison over his “misdemeanor s*x abuse charges.”
In his admission, Gooding Jr. also apologized to the other women who had accused him of the same. As per the New York Times, the actor said:
"I apologize for ever making anybody feel inappropriately touched."
However, the attorney for the victim suing him stated that they would be pursuing a civil case in federal court following Gooding Jr.’s plea deal with the prosecutors.
What did Cuba Gooding Jr. do?
In June 2019, Gooding Jr. was arrested after a 29-year-old woman had filed a police complaint against the actor for fondling her without consent at the Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge near Times Square. The actor is alleged to have violated three women in 2018 and 2019, around Manhattan, New York.
On Wednesday, the woman, Kelsey Harbert, addressed the court and expressed her account of the assault. Harbert revealed that Cuba Gooding Jr. grabbed her breast as if she was a “piece of meat for dinner that night.” She further added:
“I feel very sad and feel very lost for what I can do.”
Following his arrest in 2019 after Harbert’s allegations, multiple women came forward with their accounts of allegedly being s*xually assaulted by the 54-year-old Bronx, New York native.
In 2018, he reportedly touched a waitress inappropriately and made a s*xually suggestive comment. The incident took place in TAO Downtown. In the same year, he had been involved in another assault, where he “forcibly touched” and kissed a waitress on the lips at the LAVO New York restaurant and nightclub without her consent.
Cuba Gooding Jr., who is facing six counts of misdemeanor, denied all the charges previously. In 2013, the actor allegedly r*ped a woman, who sued him in August 2020 for $6 million in a civil lawsuit. In January, Gooding Jr.’s lawyers asked a U.S. Federal judge to dismiss her motion as she had waited seven years to sue the actor for the s*xual assault. Gooding has denied the claims.
Details of Cuba Gooding Jr’s plea deal
As part of the conditions of his plea deal with the prosecution, Gooding Jr. will avoid going to jail following the charges. However, the actor would have to complete his court-mandated alcohol and behavior modification treatment for six more months. He started the treatment in 2019. Furthermore, the 54-year-old actor’s deal will be off the table if he is arrested in a new case.
As per the court documents, the next date for Gooding’s court appearance is slated to be on October 13, 2022. While the actor has pleaded guilty to reduce the charges and avoid jail in this case, it remains to be seen what the outcome would be for his other case where he is accused of r*pe.
