Cuba Gooding Jr. will plead guilty to a lesser charge in his Manhattan sex abuse case and avoid jail time, a source close to the case said Wednesday.
The 54-year-old “Jerry Maguire” actor — who faced six counts of sexual abuse and forcible touching — will cop to a misdemeanor forcible kissing charge in Manhattan Criminal Court Wednesday afternoon, according to the source.
The plea deal, which allows him to continue working, also requires him to apologize to two women he’s accused of groping, the source said.
If he complies with the terms of the deal, the charge will be reduced to a non-criminal violation in six months, according to the source and FOX Digital.
Gooding had faced up to a year behind bars for groping three women at Manhattan hotspots in 2018 and 2019.
He was first arrested in June 2019 for allegedly squeezing a 30-year-old woman’s breast at the Moxy Hotel in Times Square.
Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. and his attorney Mark Heller listen to court proceedings as he is accused of sex crimes.Associated Press/ John Lamparski
Gooding will plead guilty to a lesser charge and avoid jail time.Associated Press/John LamparskiThe star was also charged with pinching the buttocks of TAO Downtown server Natasha Ashworth in October 2018 and subjecting a woman to “sexual contact without consent” at LAVO Nightclub on the Upper East Side.
Former New York City District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. had initially refused to give the Oscar-winning actor a deal that didn’t involve jail time. But he negotiated a more lenient deal under District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
Gooding had initially pleaded not guilty to the three separate alleged incidents, and his trial was repeatedly pushed back due to COVID-19.
Gooding Jr’s lawyer Frank Rothman didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
