Backstreet Boys member Nick Carter has been accused of rape by a woman with cerebral palsy. She lodged a civil lawsuit against Carter in the United States on Thursday. According to Shannon Ruth, now 39, Carter forced her to perform oral sex on him on a tour bus after a show in 2001 and then raped her.
In a virtual press conference, attorney Mark Boskovich said that Ruth, who was then 17, had been queueing up for an autograph after a Backstreet Boys show in Tacoma, Washington, when Carter invited her onto the bus.
“He gave her a funny tasting beverage that he called VIP juice,” Boskovich told reporters.
Then “Carter took her to the bus’s bathroom and told her to get on her knees, and he pulled down his pants and exposed his genitals ordering (her) to perform sexual acts on him.”
Boskovich said that Ruth, who was a virgin at that time cried throughout the ordeal but the singer persisted.
“Carter took (her) to a bed in the back of the bus. He pushed her onto the bed and proceeded to rape her, despite her pleas.”
After the sexual assault, Ruth, who is also autistic, said she would tell people what had happened.
“He grabbed and bruised her arm and screamed at her,” the lawyer said, adding that Carter had called her “retarded” and said “no one would ever believe in her.”
Ruth said, “The last 21 years have been filled with pain, confusion, frustration, shame and self-harm that are a direct result of Nick Carter raping me.”
During the 30-minute press conference, Ruth, who has waived the right to anonymity that is customary for victims of sexual crimes wept openly.
“Even though I’m autistic and live with cerebral palsy, I believe that nothing has affected me more or had a more lasting impact on my life than what Nick Carter did and said to me,” she said.
Nick Carter abused other women?
Filed in Las Vegas, the civil lawsuit demands unspecified damages from Carter. The suit says the 42-year-old Carter — who has previously faced unproven claims of sexual assault, which he denied – also abused three other women.
The three were not named, but Boskovich said lawyers had spoken to them.
“Nick Carter has a long history of abusing women,” Boskovich said. “Shay is determined to bring Carter to justice. She believes it’s worth it to protect other women.”
Ruth said she hadn’t come forward previously because she believed she could “go to jail” over the alleged sexual assault.
Carter’s attorney, Michael Holtz, denied the allegations in a statement shared with Fox News Digital.
“This claim about an incident that supposedly took place more than 20 years ago is not only legally meritless but also entirely untrue,” Holtz wrote.
“Unfortunately, for several years now, Ms. Ruth has been manipulated into making false allegations about Nick – and those allegations have changed repeatedly and materially over time. No one should be fooled by a press stunt orchestrated by an opportunistic lawyer – there is nothing to this claim whatsoever, which we have no doubt the courts will quickly realize,” he continued.
There was no mention of the lawsuit on Carter’s Twitter or Instagram accounts, which contained messages paying tribute to younger brother Aaron, who died last month.
Entertainment website TMZ quoted an unidentified source close to the singer as denying the claim.
“This accusation is categorically false. Nick is focusing on his family and mourning the death of his brother,” the site reported the source saying.
This isn’t the first time Carter has been accused of sexual assault. In 2017, pop girl band group member Melissa Schuman also claimed she was raped by the musician.
Carter denied the allegation at the time, saying, “Melissa never expressed to me while we were together or at any time since that anything we did was not consensual. We went on to record a song and perform together, and I was always respectful and supportive of Melissa both personally and professionally.”
Prosecutors declined to pursue charges against Carter at the time due to the statute of limitations having expired.
“The reporting party alleged that, in 2003, she was the victim of a sexual assault perpetrated by the suspect in his apartment…,” prosecutors said. “The statute of limitations expired in 2013. Therefore, an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the evidence is not warranted, and the matter is declined.”
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