Cuba Gooding Jr. settles civil sex abuse case, averting trial

Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. has settled accusations that he raped a woman in a New York City hotel a decade ago, according to court records. Tuesday’s revelation came as a trial was set to begin in federal court.

The Oscar-winning “Jerry Maguire” star had insisted through lawyers that his encounter with the woman was consensual after the two met at a nearby restaurant.

The actor faced allegations that he met the woman in Manhattan, persuaded her to join him at a hotel, and convinced her to stop at his room so he could change clothing.

The woman had proceeded anonymously until last week, when Judge Paul A. Crotty ruled that she would have to reveal her name at trial. She said in her lawsuit that Gooding raped her in his room. His lawyers, though, insisted that it was consensual sex and that she bragged afterward to others that she had sex with a celebrity.

The lawsuit sought $6 million in damages. Gloria Allred, one of several attorneys representing the woman, declined to comment to CBS News about the reported settlement.

The trial was to start with jury selection in New York federal court. Minutes after jurors were to begin assembling in a courtroom, a calendar entry in the official court record said: “TRIAL OFF.” It added: “Reason for cancellation (on consent): the parties have resolved the matter.”

The lawsuit was filed against a man who authorities say has been accused of committing sexual misconduct against more than 30 other women, including groping, unwanted kissing and other inappropriate behavior.

Late last week, the judge seemed to strengthen the woman’s hand at trial and in settlement negotiations by ruling that he would let three women testify that they also were subjected to sudden sexual assaults or attempted sexual assaults after meeting Gooding in social settings such as festivals, bars, nightclubs and restaurants.

One of the women who had planned to testify at the trial was Kelsey Harbert, who told police Gooding fondled her without her consent at Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge near Times Square in 2019.

Harbert said last year after Gooding pleaded guilty in New York state court to a charge that spared him from jail or a criminal history that never getting her day in court was “more disappointing than words can say.”