Jerry Harris: who is former Cheer star, age, sexual abuse charges explained - and what is his sentence?

Jerry Harris, the breakout star from season one of Netflix’s cheerleading docuseries Cheer, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison in the US for crimes relating to child pornography and soliciting sex from minors.

Prior to hearing his sentence, Harris told his victims: “I’m not an evil person. I’m still learning who I am and what my purpose is.”

This is everything you need to know.

Who is Jerry Harris?

Harris, 22, is an American former cheerleader best known for his involvement in the first series of the Netflix docuseries Cheer, which followed the Navarro College Bulldogs Cheer Team, under the guidance of coach Monica Aldama, as they prepared to compete at the annual National Cheerleading Championship in Daytona Beach, Florida.

He was born and raised in Illinois and attended Waubonsie Valley High School. When he was 16, he lost his mother to lung cancer.

Speaking to NBC, Hariss said: “[My mother] taught me to always be positive and always look out for people and do the right thing. That’s something I tried to emulate in her to make her proud each and every day.”

After Harris lost his mother, a group of what he describes as “cheer moms” came together to create a GoFundMe to help him pay for school and cheerleading, so he could continue to pursue his passion.

When he finished high school, Harris then enrolled at Navarro College in Texas where he joined the cheerleading team. At the end of the semester in 2020, he had been set to get his associate’s degree in kinesiology, which is the scientific study of human body movement.

After the first season of Cheer aired, the GoFundMe was reactivated, with Harris posting on Instagram: “Since Cheer came out, several people have reached out asking how they could help me.

“In response my cheer moms reactivated the GoFundMe that they set up for me four years ago.”

Within the first three days of the campaign’s relaunch, over $8,800 was donated, bringing Harris’ total to more than $40,000.

“I don’t really have the words to express how thankful I am for all of this and all of you,” he wrote at the time.

It was Harris’ unfaltering positive attitude that saw him become one of the biggest stars of Cheer after it aired in January 2020.

He appeared on the Ellen DeGeneres Show in January 2020 alongside his fellow cheerleaders and the following month it was announced that he would be the Ellen DeGeneres Show’s Oscars correspondent. He was also invited to the Vanity Fair Oscars afterparty as well.

Harris signed with the influencer management company Digital Brand Architects and its parent company, UTA, which saw the cheerleader enjoy a number of TV and sponsorship opportunities with the likes of Starburst, Cheerios and Walmart. He also launched his own line of merchandise featuring shirts with slogans like “Be a Jerry” and “You Got This”.

In 2020, Harris conducted an interview with future President of the United States Joe Biden to discuss issues facing young adults and the Black community.

What were the charges against him?

In September 2020, the FBI announced a warrant for Harris for allegedly soliciting sex from minors. The case involved two twin brothers who were 13 at the time when they met Harris, who was 19.

On 17 September, Harris was then arrested by the FBI and charged in federal court in Chicago for production of child pornography.

Prosecutors alleged at the time that he solicited videos and images from the two brothers. According to a complaint, federal prosecutors said that Harris admitted to repeatedly asking a minor teen for pornographic videos and images between December 2018 and March 2020.

In December 2020 he was indicted on more charges alleging misconduct in Illinois, Florida and Texas.

According to the indictment, Harris allegedly solicited sex from minors at cheerleading competitions and convinced teenage boys to send him explicit photographs and videos of themselves.

Harris later admitted to FBI agents to asking a teenage boy to send him photographs of himself, and to requesting child pornography on Snapchat from at least 10 to 15 others he knew to be minors, according to the indictment.

Harris previously pleaded guilty to one count of travelling with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct and one count of receiving child pornography.

His pleas were entered during a plea hearing in a US federal court in Chicago in February.

Harris pleaded guilty to two of seven counts against him including persuading a 17-year-old to send him sexually explicit photographs for money.

The other count stemmed from a trip he took to Florida for the purpose of “engaging in illicit sexual conduct” with a 15-year-old.

US prosecutors agreed to drop the remaining five counts under a plea agreement.

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.

What has he been sentenced to?

On Wednesday (6 July), Harris was sentenced to 12 years behind bars by Judge Manish S Shah at a federal court in Chicago.

Prosecutors had urged the lengthy sentence, saying that Harris’ status as a popular celebrity had enabled him to “persuade and entice” his young victims to engage in sexual conduct.

Harris, who has remained in custody at a federal detention facility since his arrest in September 2020, appeared in court for the sentence, which lasted around seven hours.

The judge told the cheerleading champion to consider the sentence an “expression of the seriousness of your crimes, tempered with some hope that all is not lost for you or for your victims, and that in the future some healing can occur”.

What did he say at his sentencing?

Addressing his victims before receiving his sentence, Harris said: “I am deeply sorry for all the trauma my abuse has caused you.

“I pray deep down that your suffering comes to an end.”

He added: “I’m not an evil person. I’m still learning who I am and what my purpose is.”

Has his former Cheer co-stars said anything?

Notable figures listed as authors of character letters used by Harris’ defence in his trial included other stars of Cheer such as Navarro college head coach Monica Aldama, teammate Morgan Simianer, and the parents of Harris’ fellow cheerleader, Gabi Butler.

Back in September 2020 when Harris was arrested, Butler released a statement on Twitter which said: “Like most of you, I am shocked, dismayed and deeply saddened by the recent news concerning my friend and former teammate Jerry Harris.

“Ever since I heard the news I have gone back and forth between sobbing uncontrollably and trying to wrap my head around why something like this could happen.

“To be clear, although I have been a close friend and teammate with Jerry, I was never aware of anything like what he has been accused of taking place. I believe the protection of children is more important than ever in today’s world and absolutely do not condone any actions that bring harm to a child.

“Issuing a statement like this hurts my heart more than any of you will ever know. As a Christian woman, the only thing I know to do is to pray for all involved and for the world we live in.

“My heart is broken.”

The second series of Cheer addressed the investigation into Harris, with episode five, titled Jerry, dedicated to the case. It included interviews with Harris’ fellow cheerleaders and with the twin teenage boys who accused Harris of sexual abuse in September 2020.

Aldama, the coach, explained that she heard the news about Harris when she was in dress rehearsal for Season 29 of Dancing With the Stars.

She said: “It was like an out of body experience at the time. I felt like I couldn’t breathe.

“It was just an awful situation, it was a really tough week because I wasn’t [with the team].”

Aldama also said that Harris wrote her a letter in which he expressed his hopes to one day become a motivational speaker.

She said: “There was not one negative thing in this letter. I was really caught off guard at the hope he had for the future. It’s sad.”