Netflix Star Pleads Guilty to Child Sex Abuse Charges
Pedophile Jerry Harris starred in docuseries 'Cheer' with Oprah Winfrey
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The star of Oprah Winfrey's Netflix show "Cheer" has pleaded guilty to multiple child sex charges, according to reports.
Court documents, revealed ahead of his Thursday hearing, showed that Jerry Harris planned to plead guilty in the federal child pornography case.
The 22-year-old pedophile admitted that he solicited sex from minors at cheerleading competitions, court records in Chicago show.
The court documents show that a change of plea hearing was scheduled for Thursday before U.S. District Judge Manish Shah.
However, the records do not indicate whether Harris is pleading guilty to all of the multiple charges against him or whether he had reached a plea deal with prosecutors.
The actor from Naperville, who starred in Winfrey's docuseries, was indicted in December 2020 on charges alleging misconduct in Florida, Illinois, and Texas.
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Federal prosecutors also alleged that Harris tried to persuade a minor to engage in oral sex at cheerleading events.
He also solicited another for sex.
Harris admitted to abusing five to 10 victims in all.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Heather McShain ordered Harris to be held behind bars in October 2020 after he was initially charged with one count of production of child pornography.
The judge suggested he would be a danger to the community if released.
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McShain said Harris exploited his position in the cheerleading community and rejected any "blurred line" between Harris’s age and that of his alleged victims.
"(Harris) was not a child," McShain said.
"He was an adult."
The "Cheer" docuseries follows the competitive cheerleading squad from Navarro College in Corsicana, Texas.
Harris has been held without bond in Chicago's downtown Metropolitan Correctional Center, records show.
