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Backstreet Boys star Nick Carter has filed a US$2.5 million (C$3.42 million) counterclaim against one of several women who have accused him of rape and sexual assault.
Carter has denied all claims made in a lawsuit filed against him by former Dream member Melissa Schuman in April 2023, accusing her of sexual assault and battery. He is suing her for defamation and interference with existing and potential business contracts.
Schumann told the court that the 44-year-old singer drugged her and sexually assaulted and raped her in his Santa Monica, California, apartment in 2003. At the time, Carter, then 22, and Schumann, then 18, were filming a thriller film together. The Hollow.
Carter’s counterclaim was filed July 26 in California Superior Court in Los Angeles County, but was only recently made public.
According to Rolling Stone, Carter, through her attorney, said she lost $2.5 million on business partnership deals with MeUndies, VRBO, Roblox, and The Children’s Place as a result of Schumann’s lawsuit. Carter also said the lawsuit slowed ticket sales for her shows, which hurt her revenue.
According to the lawsuit, one concert venue canceled his concert appearances entirely, “resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses for Carter.”
Carter’s counterclaim alleges that he was “falsely accused” of wrongdoing by Schumann, who had a “thirst for Internet relevance.” His suit claims that Carter and Schumann had a “seductive” relationship before having consensual sex in 2003.
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Schumann first accused Carter of rape and sexual assault in a 2017 blog post.
Carter also filed another defamation lawsuit against Schumann in Las Vegas. The lawsuit claims Schumann and another accuser, Shannon Ruth, have tarnished his public image with false claims.
Ruth said she was raped and sexually assaulted by Carter when she was 17.
She said Carter invited her on his tour bus after a Backstreet Boys concert in Tacoma, Washington, where he allegedly gave her alcohol, forced her to have oral sex, and then raped her. Ruth also claims she contracted HPV from Carter.
Carter called the two women “opportunists” and accused them of plotting to use the #MeToo movement to blackmail and “defame and slander” him for financial gain.
He said the lawsuit, filed in Nevada by Schumann and Ruth, resulted in him and the Backstreet Boys losing US$2.3 million (about C$3.15 million) in business dealings with companies including ABC and Roblox.
In a statement to Rolling Stone, Schuman’s attorney criticized both Carter’s counterclaim in Nevada and the new counterclaim he filed in California.
“Carter’s California counterclaim makes many of the same claims as his failed Nevada lawsuit, and both demonstrate that his approach to defending sexual assault claims is one of victim harassing,” attorney Karen Barth Menzies told the outlet.
Both Schumann and Ruth appear in a recently released documentary series. Fallen Idols: Nick and Aaron Carter, They again detailed the allegations against Carter.
At the time, Carter’s attorney called Schumann, Ruth and accuser Ashley Leff “a gang of conspirators making outrageous claims.”
Lev claimed that Carter raped her when she was 15.
Carter has never been criminally charged with any of the sexual assault allegations against him.
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If you or someone you know is being abused or involved in an abusive situation, please visit the Canadian Victims of Crime Resource Centre for assistance. You can also call toll-free at 1-877-232-2610.
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