8 Devastating Details About The Child Pornography, Sexual Battery And Rape Charges Against Glee's Mark Salling
The evidence described in his plea agreement was overwhelming.
DFree / Shutterstock Mark Salling, the 35-year-old Christian singer and actor who played the famously mohawked Noah "Puck" Puckerman on Glee, died by suicide on the morning of Tuesday, January 30, 2018.
While there was no report of a suicide note or other message explaining why he chose to hang himself from a tree near a little league field close to his home in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Sunland, many had been quick to note the timing of his death in relation to not only his ongoing battle with depression, but the fact that he was awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to possession of child pornography involving prepubescent minors, in December 2017.
However, Salling isn't the only tragedy that's been connected to Glee.
In 2013, Cory Montieth, passed away from a toxic mix of drugs and, more recently, the Glee cast also lost Naya Rivera, whose body was found at a lake that she was visiting with her son.
This has caused some to wonder if there is a "Glee curse" due to the many tragedies surrounding the former hit series.
Here are devastating details about the child pornography, sexual battery and rape charges filed against Mark Salling in the years before his death, as well as information on the supposed Glee curse.
Salling was first arrested for possession of child pornography in 2015.
On December 29, 2015, Salling was arrested by the LAPD’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force after they received a tip from a woman who was later found in several of the images in his possession. At the time, police told reporters they had found hundreds of images on Salling's home computer.
At the time, it was reported, "Police used a battering ram to force entry into Salling’s residence [where] 'hundreds' of images were found on one of Salling's personal devices during the search. [His] computer and other electronic devices were also seized after he refused to share his passwords with authorities."
He went free after being processed in the downtown Los Angeles jail on $20,000 bond.
Authorities found over 50,000 pornographic images and videos on his devices.
Federal prosecutors had revealed that authorities had found more than 50,000 images and videos of child pornography on Salling's computer. And on a separate drive, he had another 4,000 images and 160 videos.
Some of his victims were very young children, and Salling had admitted to hiding his IP address and downloading child pornography.
He pleaded guilty in October 2017 in exchange for a reduced sentence.
Although Salling originally pleaded "not guilty" when he was arrested in June 2016, he later signed a plea agreement, at which time he told the press he was, "pleading guilty because I am guilty of the charges."
The following conditions are just a small sample of those detailed at length in the 22-page plea agreement he entered into with the United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California (the "USAO"), which was first obtained by Deadline:
- "Defendent shall register as a sex offender, and keep the registration current, in each jurisdiction where defendant resides, to the extent the registration procedures have been established in each jurisdiction... Defendant shall provide of proof of registration to the Probation Officer within three days of defendant's placement on probation/release from imprisonment."
- "Defendant shall not associate or have verbal, written, telephonic, or electronic communication with any person under the age of 18, except: (a) in the presence of the parent or legal guardian of said minor; and (b) on the condition that defendant notifies said parent or legal guardian of defendant's conviction in the instant offense/prior offense."
- "Defendant shall not reside within direct view of school yards, parks, public swimming pools, playgrounds, youth centers, video arcade facilities, or other places primarily used by persons under the age of 18."
The agreement details the horrifying extent of his collection.
A section describing the "factual basis" of the charges against him states that, "on at least two occasions in 2015, defendant showed his child pornography collection to an adult woman in the context of their sexual relationship. This was ultimately reported to law enforcement."
The document then goes on to describe, in heart-wrenching detail, some of what was found on his computer:
- An image file showing "a prepubescent girl [known to be a victim of child exploitation] orally copulating an adult male's penis."
- A video file showing "a prepubescent girl [known to be a victim of child exploitation] laying on her back with her hands above her head while an adult penis rubs and penetrates her vagina."
- A video file showing "a little girl approximately 3-5 years old [known to be a victim of child exploitation]. She is naked and straddling an adult male while the man's penis penetrates her vagina... Defendant acknowledges that this image, among others in his collection... portrays the sexual abuse or exploitation of a toddler."
The document further describes the highly organized filing system Salling maintained, using as an example, "one series of folders [named] as follows: '[girl's name] - 2y,' '[girl's name]] - 3y,' '[girl's name] - 4 y, and [girl's name] - 6y.'"
And perhaps most disturbing, the official document states, "Defendant also possessed [a] document called 'jazzguide,' which is a manual that instructs adult men how to vaginal and anal intercourse with little girls who are between three and six years old."
Ex-girlfriend Naya Rivera had found the charges against Salling unsurprising.
In a 2016 interview, Rivera, who played cheerleader Santana on Glee and dated Salling for three years, revealed, "He always was a very dark soul to me. I just always felt like there was something that he was wrestling with."
This wasn't Salling's first serious brush with the law.
In January 2013, ex-girlfriend and Playboy model Roxanne Gorzela filed a complaint alleging that Salling was guilty of sexual battery, assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and negligence.
These incidents took place in 2011 and Salling denied her claims. The two reached a settlement in March 2015. According to the terms of the settlement, a judge ordered Salling to pay $2.7 million to Gorzela.
At the time, Salling had shrugged off the charges to the media.
“You hear about fraudulent lawsuits all the time,” he said. “Until it happens to you, you really don’t grasp what it does, not to just you, but to your family... You just have to stay positive, and I personally have a relationship with Jesus Christ and I count on that myself.”
And it wasn't his last.
Just over a year after settling the case brought by Gorzela and in the midst of the Federal child pornography investigation, yet another woman came forward, this time accusing Salling of rape.
Ultimately, however, "the L.A. County District Attorney just rejected the case, citing insufficient evidence, lack of corroboration and a 4 year delay in reporting the alleged crime."
The woman had made additional allegations afterwards, none of which were accepted by the prosecutors.
Nor was this his first attempt to take his own life.
In 2017, Salling's first suicide attempt was reported. After attempting suicide, he had reportedly "freaked out" and called for his roommate, who contacted 911 and paramedics eventually took him to the hospital.
Salling recovered, but was taken to rehab for psychological issues.
Is there really a Glee curse?
Following the recent tragic passing of Naya Rivera, the question of whether or not there's a "curse" surrounding the show has entered the minds of many on the internet.
A source who worked on the series recently spoke out on this theory, saying, “I don’t know if I would say it was cursed, but it’s unfortunate for most of them. The things that have happened with some of the cast... it’s very sad.”
Another recent incident was that of castmate Lea Michele, who had been called out for her treatment towards the show's Black cast members.
The source went on to say, “It wasn’t the friendliest place. It just wasn’t a friendly cast. They were very spoiled and bratty kids, and they got a chance to do whatever they wanted to do. They did a lot of things in hiding that nobody knew about. During our lunch breaks, they’d go off and go drink while they were working and then come back.”
Editor's Note: This article was originally posted in January 2018 and was updated with the latest information.
Deputy Editor Arianna Jeret, MA/MSW, has been featured in Cosmopolitan, The Huffington Post, Yahoo Style, MSN, Fox News, Bustle, Parents and more. Find her on Twitter and Instagram for more.