Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. has settled with a woman who claims he raped her, averting a trial that was about to begin in New York City.

Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. has pleaded guilty to forcibly kissing a worker at a New York nightclub in 2018, calling himself a “celebrity figure” who meant no harm.

A judge says Cuba Gooding Jr. will go on trial in February in his New York City groping case.

(CNN) - Cuba Gooding Jr. pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court on Tuesday to two additional charges in a New York sex abuse case. It's now a four-count indictment against Gooding, which also includes the two previous misdemeanors: forcible touching and sex abuse in the third degree, related to an alleged groping incident with a different woman in June. On Tuesday, the defense asked the court to sever the two new charges and to proceed on the first set of charges in trial. Twelve other women have come forward claiming the actor committed "similar bad acts," according to the District Attorney's office. The women accuse Gooding of nonconsensual touching, grabbing, groping, grinding, rubbing, kissing, biting and licking.

Cuba Gooding Jr. is facing an additional, undisclosed charge in a New York sex abuse case. (CNN) - Cuba Gooding Jr. is facing an additional, undisclosed charge in a New York sex abuse case. The Oscar winner was previously charged with two misdemeanors: forcible touching and sex abuse in the third degree, related to the alleged groping incident in June. A 29-year-old woman filed a police report at the time stating Gooding grabbed her breast at Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge in Manhattan. He did not comment on the additional charge and thanked the court officer with a nod and a quiet "thanks" after the judge dismissed them for the day.

NEW YORK - The sex abuse case against Cuba Gooding Jr. can go forward after a New York judge threw out a motion to dismiss the case, according to court documents. Gooding has been charged with forcible touching, a misdemeanor, and sex abuse in the third degree relating to an alleged groping incident in New York City in June. A 29-year-old woman filed a police report claiming Gooding grabbed her breast at Magic Hour Rooftop Bar & Lounge in Manhattan. In a statement Thursday, Gooding's attorney Mark Jay Heller said: "I am totally confident that when a jury of Cuba Gooding Jr.'s peers assess all of the exculpatory evidence in this case, that he will be totally exonerated." Gooding voluntarily surrendered to the NYPD for questioning and pleaded not guilty to the charges in a Manhattan courtroom.