New York: Cuba Gooding Jr.'s trial on groping charges is set to begin this week.
The trial, which is scheduled to start on Thursday, was postponed in September after prosecutors said they were still waiting for evidence in the Oscar-winning Jerry Maguire star's case. Gooding's lawyers argued against the delay.
The actor is accused of placing his hand on a 29-year-old woman's breast and squeezing it without her consent at Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge near Times Square on June 9. The woman told police she believed Gooding was intoxicated.
The 51-year-old Gooding was arrested four days later after turning himself into police. He pleaded not guilty to forcible touching and sexual abuse charges and was released on his own recognizance.
Cuba Gooding's groping trial set to begin this week Gooding later requested to have his case thrown out, but he was rejected.
The defence had filed papers saying the misdemeanour forcible touching case should be dismissed based on accounts of two witnesses who say it never happened, and that video from the barbacks up that claim. The papers argued that since there was clear evidence that no crime was committed, it was necessary to throw out the case to protect the integrity of the criminal justice system.
The judge ruled that the conflicting accounts should be resolved at a trial. Gooding will face up to a year in jail if convicted.
