Cuba Gooding Jr. pleads guilty to forcibly touching NYC nightclub waitress

Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. on Wednesday pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of forcible touch after he kissed a New York City nightclub waitress in 2018. 

The Oscar-winning actor was arrested in 2019 for groping a woman's breast at a nightclub; two more allegations came out in the following months.

He admitted in court that he "kissed the waitress on her lips" without her consent, The Associated Press reported. This is the only allegation to which he pleaded guilty.

Gooding, 54, previously denied the allegations and entered not guilty pleas to six misdemeanors.

His plea deal allows him to avoid jail time. If the "Jerry Maguire" star continues six months of counseling, he will be able to withdraw his misdemeanor plea to plead guilty to a harassment charge instead.

If the case went to trial, the judge ruled that prosecutors could have allowed two more women to testify about Goodings' alleged inappropriate interactions. 

While the two women's claims did not result in criminal charges, prosecutors sought to call 19 other accusers as witnesses against Gooding.