he star of hit Netflix series cheers has been reportedly sentenced to 12 years behind bars in the US for crimes related to child pornography and sex with minors.
Prosecutors had pushed for the long sentence, saying Jerry Harris’s status as a popular celebrity had enabled him to “persuade and entice” his young victims into sexual behavior.
Judge Manish S Shah handed the verdict to the social media star and cheerleading champion in a federal court in Chicago on Wednesday.
Harris, who has been in custody in a federal detention facility since his arrest in September 2020, appeared in court for the verdict, which lasted about seven hours.
Notable figures listed as authors of character letters to be used by his defense included other Cheer stars such as Navarro College head coach Monica Aldama, teammate Morgan Simianer, and the parents of Harris’ fellow cheerleader, Gabi Butler.
The 22-year-old previously pleaded guilty to traveling for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct and receiving child pornography.
His pleas were submitted during a plea hearing in a US federal court in Chicago in February.
Harris pleaded guilty to two of the seven charges against him, including convincing a 17-year-old to send him sexually explicit photos for money.
The other count came from a trip he made to Florida with the aim of “performing illicit sexual behavior” with a 15-year-old.
US prosecutors agreed to drop the remaining five counts under a plea deal.
A US child pornography charge carries a sentence ranging from five to 20 years, and the second charge carries a maximum sentence of 30 years.
Harris, of the Chicago suburb of Naperville, was the breakout star of Cheer, a series that followed a cheerleading team from Navarro College in Corsicana, Texasbecause it was looking for a national title.
He was arrested in September 2020 on charges of producing child pornography.
Prosecutors at the time alleged that he had requested videos and images of two 14-year-old brothers.
According to a complaint, federal prosecutors said Harris admitted to repeatedly asking an underage teen to provide pornographic videos and images between December 2018 and March 2020.
In December 2020, he was indicted on more misconduct charges in Illinois, Florida and Texas.
According to the indictment, Harris asked minors for sex at cheerleading competitions and persuaded teenage boys to send him obscene photos and videos of himself.
Harris later admitted to FBI agents that he had asked a teenage boy to send him pictures of himself, and that, according to the indictment, he had requested child pornography on Snapchat from at least 10 to 15 others he knew were underage.
The second series of Cheer covers the investigation of Harris and devotes an entire episode to the incidents, entitled “Jerry”.