Cuba Gooding, Jr. accuser seeking default judgement in groping case

A female bartender who is suing Cuba Gooding, Jr. for allegedly groping her backside is seeking a default judgement against the star for apparently ignoring her lawsuit.

Natasha Ashworth claims she was working at TAO Downtown Nightclub in New York in October 2018, when Cuba made an inappropriate joke about a penis and later reportedly grabbed her butt.

She confronted the actor, who insisted he touched her lower back, and when Ashworth suggested he should leave, he is said to have replied, "You don't have to worry, because I am never coming back here again."

She sued for assault, battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress in legal papers filed in late 2019, but Cuba has yet to submit a formal response - and doesn't even have a civil lawyer listed on the case.

Now Ashworth is requesting the judge overseeing the dispute issue a default ruling and decide on an assessment of damages against the Jerry Maguire star, reports the New York Post's Page Six.

A decision has yet to be made, but Cuba's criminal defence attorney, Mark Heller, has dismissed Ashworth's claims as "totally baseless".

Heller is representing Cuba in his upcoming criminal trial on misdemeanour sexual abuse and forcible touching charges, relating to the allegations of Ashworth and two other accusers. He has denied the charges.

The 53-year-old's legal woes also include an accusation of rape following an alleged encounter with another female in a Manhattan hotel room in 2013. The woman, only identified as Jane Doe, filed a civil suit in August.