After pleading guilty to sex offenses involving juveniles, former “Cheer” star Jerry Harris was given a 12-year jail term on Wednesday, according to CBS Chicago. A court-supervised release period of eight years will also be served to him.
Following his coercion of a youngster to email him sexually graphic photos in exchange for money, Harris entered a guilty plea to a child pornography charge in February. In addition, he admitted guilt to a charge of engaging in “illegal sexual behavior” with a kid while traveling for illicit sex, according to The Associated Press. The incident involved a trip he took to Florida.
In accordance with a statement issued by his attorney, Harris expressed regret to his victims at the sentencing hearing and described his acts as “wrong and selfish.”
I don’t deserve your pardon, but I do hope that someday you will find it in your hearts, Harris continued.
Since his arrest in September 2020, the 22-year-old has been detained in a federal detention prison without posting a bond.
He and his colleagues appeared in the Emmy-winning docuseries “Cheer,”
Which chronicles the lives of the Navarro cheer squad, he gained notoriety. He was born Jeremiah Harris. Even Harris, a personality for “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” attended the Academy Awards in 2020.
He was, however, apprehended and charged with one count of manufacturing child pornography in September 2020 after a protracted FBI investigation.
Harris allegedly contacted a juvenile in 2018 and asked for images of his “facial” and “booty,”
Despite the fact that the minor had informed Harris that he was 13 years old. In his lawsuit, the child said that over the course of more than a year, he sent Harris dozens of images. At a cheering competition, the juvenile allegedly told detectives that Harris tried to recruit him for oral sex while they were both in the restroom.
Harris allegedly made the same demand in a different tournament three months after the minor had rejected his plea. In February 2020, a month after the youngster was reported missing, Harris allegedly blocked the child on Snapchat “He received a message from Netflix saying, “I’m sorry for what I’ve done in the past,” when the movie “Cheer” was released. The notion of us becoming buddies on Snap doesn’t appeal to me.”
Harris was charged with soliciting nude images by a second kid
In the complaint, detectives claimed Harris acknowledged several claims, including soliciting nude images, attempting to have oral sex at cheerleading competitions, and receiving child pornography from 10 to 15 additional kids he was aware were minors, among other things.
At cheerleading competitions, Harris allegedly solicited sex from kids, and he allegedly worked to get young boys to send him pictures and videos, according to seven additional counts that were added to his original indictment in December 2020.
The twin cheerleaders Charlie and Sam who are labeled as minors in the first federal complaint were proven to be them on the most recent season of “Cheer.” Because of Harris’ rising popularity, the brothers admitted they had been reluctant to criticize him, but Charlie claimed that after hearing him speak with Joe Biden in an interview in June 2020, he “lost it” and realized he had to act.
In order to humanize Jerry Harris, Charlie remarked, “I want to expose the world and give people a face to what he did.”
According to Kristen, Charlie and Sam’s mother
CBS Chicago learned that this incident does not occur infrequently. He thrust himself into the heart of my sons’ lives for more than a year and was an exceptionally relentless predator.
A victim’s advocate named Sarah Klein claimed that Harris’ sentence “reflects the enormity of his crimes and the lifetime of suffering his victims will face.”
Klein continued, “Charlie and Sam showed incredible bravery by disclosing their traumatic experiences to the authorities and the public. They will safeguard youngsters they have never met because of their sacrifice.
50 years in prison was the maximum penalty for Harris. According to the AP, prosecutors asked for a sentence of 15 years, although Harris’s attorneys requested a six-year sentence.
For more updates, keep reading – pelhamplus.com
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