NEW YORK (CelebrityAccess) — Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. pleaded not guilty to a misdemeanor charge of forcibly touching a woman in 2018.
Gooding faces the charge after he was alleged to have forced a kiss on a waitress while at a Manhattan nightclub, the Magic Hour Rooftop Bar, in 2018.
According to the New York Times, Gooding conceded that he had kissed the waitress and apologized for “making ever making anybody feel inappropriately touched.”
Under the terms of his plea agreement, Gooding must continue to attend alcohol and behavior counseling for the next six months and must avoid future arrests. If he violates the terms of the plea agreement, he faces up to a year in prison.
The judge presiding over the case, Supreme Court, Justice Curtis Farber, barred testimony from 19 other women who came forward to make similar claims against Gooding Jr., which would have allowed prosecutors to argue that Gooding had a pattern of misconduct.
Justice Farber had initially allowed two of Gooding’s accusers to present testimony but assistant district attorney, Coleen Balbert, on Wednesday revealed in court that the decision had been overturned, according to the Times.
Some of Gooding’s alleged victims expressed frustration at not being allowed to present testimony in the case.
“I won’t lie,” one of the women who identified herself as Kelsey Harbert, told the New York Times. “I’m very disappointed that we are here today discussing a plea deal.”
