After a lengthy hearing, Jerry Harris, 22, was sentenced on Wednesday, July 6. According to reports, he will also serve eight years of a court-supervised release. The big fan favourite from the docuseries’ first season was detained in September 2020 on suspicion of child pornography just as season 2’s production was getting underway. His detention was also covered on the show.
Jerry had received sponsorships and had worked that year as a red carpet correspondent for Ellen DeGeneres, hence the announcement shocked both the production and its viewers. The star admitted guilt to a child p*rnography allegation back in February. This was related to an incident in which he persuaded a kid to submit him obscene photos in exchange for money.
According to The Associated Press, Jerry also admitted to travelling with kids for illicit lewd behaviour after going to Florida to have “illicit sexual behaviour” with a 15-year-old. Prosecutors had filed five more federal charges against him, but they eventually dropped them as part of a plea deal. According to a source who spoke to TMZ, Harris “been ordered into 8 years to pay $35,000 into AVAA crime victims fund, along with court-supervised release after imprisonment.”
Jerry might have received a sentence of up to 50 years. Two of the victims are twin brothers. According to the complaint, one of the boys claimed to police that Harris sought oral sex from him in a washroom at a cheerleading event they both attended. According to the lawsuit, Harris was also accused of contacting the kid on Instagram in 2018, when Harris was 19 and the boy was 13.
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Also, according to the complaint, one of the boys stated that he gave Harris nude photographs on Snapchat at Harris’ request and spoke with Harris on FaceTime, where Harris requested the child to expose himself. Prosecutors claimed Harris, who marketed himself as a trustworthy mentor, would put pressure on his victims and offer to pay them in return for sexual favours and behaviour. When that didn’t work, he “threatened to disseminate the videos they had sent if they refused to continue,” the sentencing memorandum said.