GROPING FOR A DEFENSE
Judge nixes grilling Cuba accuser about her breast angst
A Manhattan judge denied a request from Cuba Gooding Jr.’s attorney Thursday that sought permission to grill one of the actor’s accusers about her chest size.
“Do you intend to ask the witness what she feels about the size of her breasts?” Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Curtis Farber asked defense attorney Peter Toumbekis during a pretrial conference.
“I actually do,” Toumbekis replied.
Gooding’s lawyer said the woman’s negative feelings about her body — which she reportedly blogged about online — affected her perceptions of sexual assault and the allegations she’s levied against the actor.
The woman identified by Manhattan prosecutors as “accuser No. 1” says that Gooding groped her breast at the Magic Hour bar in the Moxy Times Square hotel on June 9, 2019.
Assistant District Attorney Jenna Long said the lawyer’s “simply offensive” proposed line of questioning existed only to “embarrass and offend the complainant,” and is barred by rape shield laws. Judge Farber agreed.
“I don’t see how you connect A to B,” he told Toumbekis, who also wanted to ask about the woman’s alleged preference for threesomes.
The judge also said that if Toumbekis could convince him the topic was relevant, he’d revisit the request.
“I’m now giving you an order not to do it,” the judge said.
Gooding arrived at Manhattan Supreme Court about 9:30 a.m. wearing a midnight-blue suit and a black face mask. Court staff took his temperature before he rode the elevator to Farber’s 13th-floor courtroom.
Upon leaving the building about two hours later, Gooding stopped in front of reporters and slipped off his protective mask to reveal “Black Lives Matter” writing on the inside.
“Black lives matter,” he said to the media, while declining to answer any questions about his case.
A total of 30 women have come forward with wideranging claims of sexual abuse from Gooding — including forcible kissing and touching — that span more than a decade, and some of the alleged incidents happened outside of New York. At Thursday’s hearing, Long said prosecutors were in contact with eight new accusers, one of whom alleges Gooding groped her in L.A. in 2016.
The criminal charges against him, however, only relate to allegations from three women, although two of the other accusers will be allowed to testify in the case.
The “End Game” actor, 52, faces six misdemeanor counts of forcible touching and sexual abuse that could land him behind bars for a year if convicted. Gooding has denied all the allegations and pleaded not guilty.