Cheer Athletics Bankruptcy Delays Trial, Justice in Sexual Abuse Case, Attorney Says

Twin sisters from Frisco were just days away from taking the stand in a jury trial against their former competitive cheerleading coach, who they say molested them, but a last-minute bankruptcy filing has brought the case to a screeching halt. 

Cheer Athletics–Plano, one of three North Texas gyms representing one of the largest All-Star level cheerleading organizations in the world, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Sunday, citing “significant legal expenses.” The filing came less than 24 hours before the company was expected to appear in a Travis County court. 

The Plano and Frisco gyms, along with the parent Cheer Athletics company, are named in a lawsuit filed by two former cheerleaders who say the organization failed to protect them even after being made aware of sexual abuse allegations. According to the lawsuit, former coach Jason McCartney began abusing Hannah and Jessica Gerlacher in 2015. The report details instances of groping, grooming and “pushing up” against the women while aroused. It also claims that Hannah was abused more severely than her sister because she’d suffered a head injury that left her especially vulnerable.

The Gerlachers say they attempted to anonymously report McCartney to the U.S. All-Star Federation (which is also named as a defendant in the lawsuit), the cheer world’s governing body. The lawsuit alleges officials “buried” the claims, rather than investigating them, and allowed McCartney to continue interacting with minor athletes. McCartney has not been criminally charged.

“The owners, they would be in the building [during practices],” Hannah Gerlacher told the Observer in 2022. “One time I was sitting on Jason McCartney’s lap and making eye contact with Angela [Rogers, co-founder and owner of Cheer Athletics]. And I was just staring at her and it was just ignored, never mentioned. Like she didn’t think that was a problem, the cute 15-year-old sitting on a 40-year-old man’s lap.”

The Gerlacher’s attorney, Michelle Simpson Tuegel, said that a bankruptcy filing is a common strategy of defendants looking to avoid a jury trial because it initiates an automatic stay on the court’s proceedings. Tuegel, who has represented clients in sexual abuse cases against the Boy Scouts of America and U.S. Gymnastics coach Larry Nassar, said bankruptcy filings are typically reserved for cases involving “hundreds of claims” against a defendant. 

“That is not the case here. And in the other cases where we’ve had this happen, it wasn’t done in the 11th hour, right before a jury trial,” Tuegel said. “I wouldn’t call this strategic as much as a potential abuse of the bankruptcy process.”

A statement published to the Cheer Athletics Facebook page assured parents that, despite the filing, business would continue as normal. The post assures parents that “the same familiar faces, coaches and teammates” will still be seen at the North Texas gym.

That seems unusual, said Tuegel; not like the “struggling business” that a bankruptcy filing might suggest. She said the plaintiffs will attempt to move the case back to a jury trial, a decision that would ultimately have to be made by the bankruptcy court. The last-minute decision to file for bankruptcy signals to her that Cheer Athletics “wanted to avoid a jury trial at all costs.”

“We made the strategic decision to do this for the purpose of reorganization after nearly five years of significant legal expenses,” Cheer Athletics said in a written statement provided to the sporting outlet Sportico. “While we remain confident in our legal position, this incredibly difficult decision will allow us to strengthen our foundation and continue serving our athletes now and for many years to come.”

This is not the first time Cheer Athletics’ North Texas leaders have faced accusations of wrongdoing. Rogers, the owner mentioned by Hannah Gerlacher, was named in a lawsuit filed after cheer coach Jerry Harris, who rose to prominence for his positivity on the Netflix show Cheer, was arrested for child pornography. Rogers was accused in the lawsuit of “tipping off” Harris to the federal investigation into his behaviors, causing him to ditch his cellphone, which contained evidence. Harris is currently serving a 12-year prison sentence.

Cheer Athletics was also slated to face trial this month in a case filed by the mother of a deaf cheerleader, who says her daughter was discriminated against.

“There is certainly some measure of justice that can be obtained through bankruptcy court,” said Tuegel. “It’s certainly painful not to get your day in court in a trial based on the facts, but I always tell clients this isn’t the end of the road, it’s just a different road. It’s not the road we would choose, but we’re not done and we’re not giving up.”