Bar gal's 'bum' rap vs. Cuba
Actor ‘pinched’ my butt: lawsuit
A Manhattan nightclub bartender says actor Cuba Gooding Jr. “pinched” her butt after she repeatedly rebuffed his advances, according to a new lawsuit.
Natasha Ashworth says Gooding — who has been accused of getting handsy by at least 14 women — was a total dog as she waited on him at Tao Downtown Nightclub on Oct. 24 last year, according to the suit filed Monday in Manhattan Supreme Court.
The “Jerry Maguire” star — who has pleaded not guilty to four misdemeanor counts of sex abuse and forcible touching — allegedly first said to her, “Do you want to see my impression of a penis?”
Ashworth responded no, but that didn’t stop Gooding from doing the impression anyway — by taking a sip of water and then “spitting liquid out of his mouth,” according to court papers filed on Monday.
At the end of Ashworth’s shift at around 4:20 a.m., he waltzed up and “using his right hand reached to pinch [Ashworth] on her right buttocks,” the court documents charge.
Ashworth told him, “Don’t touch my butt” and he responded, “Aw, that’s no fun,” tapping her on the arm, the court papers say.
“And I didn’t, I touched your back,” he continued, according to court papers.
Gooding allegedly tried to grip her twice more but she managed to deflect, her suit alleges. A club promoter then booted Gooding from the Chelsea club, the suit claims.
Gooding “pushed the promoter out of his way and approached a manager,” who was standing by Ashworth, where he tried again to grab her, the court papers allege.
Gooding’s lawyer, Mark Heller, told The Post that Ashworth was the second victim to press criminal charges against him anonymously — and since her suit has now revealed her identity, “We can only assume she is looking for notoriety.”
“It is rumored she is an aspiring actress,” he said. “We welcome this baseless civil claim as a validation that the inspiration for her criminal accusation and this civil complaint is a money grab from Cuba, who previously declined to be shaken down by this individual.”
A woman in Los Angeles also accused the actor of grabbing her butt at a party. Prosecutors said they didn’t have enough evidence to bring a case. Heller said at the time that Gooding didn’t remember the alleged incident.
Ashworth is suing for damages and demanding a jury trial. Her lawyer did not immediately return a request for comment.