Content material warning: This story comprises dialogue and outline of claims of sexual assault
Nick Carter has filed a countersuit in opposition to a girl who has claimed that he raped her when she was 17.
The alleged sufferer, Shannon Ruth, now 39, filed a civil lawsuit in opposition to the singer, 43, in Nevada courtroom in December of final yr. In it, Ruth claims that Carter invited her onto his tour bus following a live performance in Tacoma, Washington in February 2001 and raped her and contaminated her with a sexually transmitted an infection.
Carter, a member of Backstreet Boys, had denied the allegations in a press release by way of his lawyer to TMZ, saying that the countersuit that he filed yesterday (February 2) goals to place “an finish to the smears and tried shakedowns for good”.
In accordance with courtroom papers obtained by Rolling Stone, Carter filed his counter-complaint in Nevada yesterday and is searching for at the least $2.35million (£1.93million) in damages.
Carter alleged to TMZ that the damages complete is identical quantity that Ruth’s accusations have price himself and his band in cancelled appearances and varied offers.
Ruth, who describes herself as autistic and having cerebral palsy, recalled in a press convention what Carter allegedly mentioned to her after the claimed assault: “After he raped me, I keep in mind him calling me a ‘r******d bitch’ and grabbing me and leaving bruises on my arm.”
Within the countersuit, Carter’s authorized workforce accuse Ruth of being “manipulated into making false allegations” by Melissa Schuman – previously a member of the ’00s lady band Dream – and her father, Jerome.
Schuman beforehand got here ahead in a weblog publish in November 2017, claiming that Carter pressured himself upon her at his LA residence and took her virginity.
Carter denied the allegations in a press release on the time, saying that Schuman had “by no means expressed to me whereas we have been collectively or at any time since that something we did was not consensual … It’s opposite to my nature and all the pieces I maintain pricey to deliberately trigger somebody discomfort or hurt”.
The Los Angeles County District Lawyer’s Workplace declined to prosecute the matter after Schuman filed a police report with the Santa Monica Police Division in February 2018, explaining that the statute of limitations had expired in 2013.
Final December, a Christmas TV particular with Backstreet Boys was pulled following Ruth’s sexual assault allegations being levelled in opposition to Carter.
