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Nick Carter is going on the offensive against an accusation of rape.
On Thursday, the Backstreet Boys member filed a countersuit against Shannon Ruth, who came forward with her sexual assault allegations in December, TMZ reported.
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Rolling Stone obtained court papers showing Carter is seeking at least $2.35 million in damages as part of his filing, which is the amount he claims the accusations have cost him and his band due to cancelled appearances and other deals.
At a press conversation last month, Ruth said that in February 2001, she had been invited on Carter’s tour bus after a concert in Tacoma, Wash.
While receiving a tour of the bus, Ruth says that Carter forced her to perform oral sex on him, penetrated her and gave her an STD.
“After he raped me, I remember him calling me a ‘retarded bitch’ and grabbing me and leaving bruises on my arm,” she said at the press conference.
The allegations prompted ABC to cancel their planned airing of a Backstreet Boys Christmas special.
Carter’s counterclaim questions Ruth’s credibility, asserting that her story about the alleged incident has “changed repeatedly and materially over time.”
He also suggests that Ruth is being “manipulated into making false allegations” by Melissa Schuman, who accused him of rape in 2017. In 2018, L.A. prosecutors declined to charge Carter in the case.
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“The reporting party alleged that in 2003, she was the victim of a sexual assault perpetrated by the suspect in his apartment,” the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office stated in a filing at the time. “The victim was 18 years old at the time of the assault.”
They added, “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.”
“Nick has denied these allegations ever since he first learned of them last year, and was confident the District Attorney would conclude that there was no basis to pursue charges against him,” Carter’s lawyer said in a statement at the time. “He is happy to put this matter behind him.”
Regarding Ruth’s allegations, Carter’s lawyer told TMZ that the singer plans to put “an end to the smears and attempted shakedowns for good.”
