Cuba Gooding Jr. was indicted over a new undisclosed charge in his sexual misconduct case on Thursday, according to reports.
The Oscar-winning actor was “indicted on charges included in this docket as well as an additional incident previously uncharged,” Assistant District Attorney Jenna Long said, according to The Daily Beast.
Gooding Jr.’s trial over third-degree misdemeanor sexual abuse and forcible touching charges began Thursday. The 51-year-old actor has pleaded not guilty to both charges.
The alleged incident occurred in June, when a woman told authorities the actor groped her breasts without her consent at a Manhattan club. The woman, whose identity is not known, informed authorities that Gooding Jr. appeared to be “highly intoxicated” and the pair got into an argument that had to be broken up by security.
Mark J. Heller, the actor’s defense attorney, has steadfastly denied any allegations that Gooding Jr. groped the 29-year-old woman. “We have reviewed the tapes, and we do not see any criminal conduct having been perpetrated on his part,” the defense attorney told The Daily Beast. “He respects women. I’ve known him for over 30 years, this is not something he would do.”
Gooding Jr., who recently came back into the spotlight as OJ Simpson in “The People v. OJ Simpson” television series, has also denied the allegations.
“I trust the system, let the process speak for itself,” the actor told TMZ in June. “There’s a tape that shows what really happened.”
The trial cannot continue until the actor is arraigned on the new indictment, details of which are unclear at this time.
