NFL Cheerleader Pleads Not Guilty in Sex Case

The captain of the Cincinnati Bengals cheerleading squad and her mother both pleaded not guilty today to charges in a sex abuse case, the Kentucky Enquirer reports. Sarah Jones, 26, is accused of having an affair with a 16-year-old football player at a high school where she once taught—her mother, Cheryl Jones, of tampering with physical evidence in the case. The arrests mark the latest chapter in a charmed life that went awry when a website made claims about Sarah's sex life in 2009, the New York Daily News reports.

Back then, Jones was dating her high school sweetheart, teaching high school, and leading the Cincinnati Ben-Gals cheerleading squad, ABC News reports. Things went sour when TheDirty.com posted a photo of her with Bengals kicker Shayne Graham and claimed she had an STD. Jones begged the site to delete the posts and later sued for defamation of character, winning an $11 million judgment—but litigation is ongoing. Sarah and her mother are currently held on bonds at the Kenton County Detention Center in northern Kentucky. (More Sarah Jones stories.)