Nick Carter Accuses Melissa Schuman of Playing Legal Games, Demands Sexual Assault Lawsuit Be Dismissed in California
Dec. 21 2023, Published 12:00 p.m. ET
Nick Carter demanded his accuser Melissa Schuman’s lawsuit be dismissed in California — and accused her of playing legal games in their battle.
According to court documents obtained by RadarOnline.com, the Backstreet Boys singer asked a Los Angeles Superior Court judge to dismiss the case brought by Schuman on April 11, 2023.
Carter's motion will be discussed at a hearing on July 10.
In her complaint, Schuman, who was a member of the girl group Dream, accused Carter of sexual assault. She said the alleged incident went down in 2002 at Carter’s apartment in Santa Monica, California.
At the time, Schuman would have been 18 and Carter was 22. Schuman claimed the boy band member took her virginity despite her objections.
She claimed Carter forcibly performed oral sex on her and then made her perform the same act on him. =
In 2017, Schuman filed a police report against Carter. The District Attorney declined to press charges.
Carter denied all allegations of wrongdoing.
A couple of months before Schuman filed her lawsuit, a woman named Shannon Ruth sued Carter over an alleged assault in 2001. The case was filed in Nevada court.
Ruth, who has autism and cerebral palsy, claimed that the Backstreet Boys member invited her to his tour bus after an event.
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She claimed Carter forced her to perform oral sex in the bus bathroom. Ruth claimed Carter continued to sexually assault her on a bed.
Carter’s lawyer said about Ruth's lawsuit, “This claim about an incident that supposedly took place more than 20 years ago is not only legally meritless but also entirely untrue."
In February 2023, Carter countersued Ruth, Schuman, and Schuman’s father Jerome for $2.3 million in Nevada court. He accused Ruth of being coached by Schuman and Schuman’s father.
He accused Schuman and her father of coaching Ruth on what to say about Carter. In his suit, he accused Ruth of attempting to extort him before filing her lawsuit.
Now, Carter has asked a Los Angeles judge to dismiss Schuman’s claims in California and force her to fight the case entirely in Nevada.
The singer argued Schuman should have brought her claims as a counterclaim in Ruth’s lawsuit.
Shannon Ruth at her press conference announcing her lawsuit.
“All parties and important witnesses are residents of Nevada. There is essentially zero connection between this lawsuit and California,” he argued. Carter said not only do the witnesses live in Nevada but Schuman does too.
In addition, Carter said Schuman only filed her California case AFTER a Nevada judge denied a motion brought by Ruth to dismiss Carter’s counterclaim.
“Rather than file her lawsuit against Carter in Nevada, she opted to file in California, a state where none of the parties or important witnesses resided,” his motion read. “Schuman was/is clearly forum shopping by filing this action in California in order to either attain a more favorable result or inconvenience Carter.”
A judge has yet to rule.