Nick Carter is being accused of raping an underage girl back in 2001, according to a press conference held by the alleged victim and her lawyers on Thursday.
Shannon “Shay” Ruth alleged in the Facebook livestream amid tears that when she was just 17 years old the Backstreet Boys member sexually assaulted her.
“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,” the now 39-year-old alleged.
“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.”
Ruth then further alleged, “After he raped me, I remember him calling me a ‘retarded bitch’ and grabbing me and leaving bruises on my arm.”
She added, “Carter tried to scare me into silence … he was nasty and threatening.”
Ruth noted in the press conference that she was hesitant to speak out because she believed that she could “go to jail” if she told anyone what allegedly occurred.
However, she said her motivation now was to “stop” Nick Carter from “assaulting more teens and women” and “hold Nick Carter accountable.”
“Just because Nick Carter is a celebrity does not mean that he is excused from his crimes,” the woman concluded. “I am a survivor and always will be.”
Ruth’s attorney Mark J. Boskovich also took the podium to support his client and said there are three other women — identified only as Jane Doe — who are named in a joint lawsuit filed alongside Ruth.
“Nick Carter has a long history of abusing women,” the lawyer claimed, adding that the music industry allegedly has a history of “looking away.”
“Shay is determined to bring Carter to justice,” Boskovich said. “She believes it’s worth it to protect other women.”
In the lawsuit filed Thursday and obtained by Page Six, the alleged victim detailed in the suit that she was invited to the “I Want It That Way” singer’s tour bus following a concert she attended in Tacoma, Wash., after standing in line at an autograph line.
Ruth then alleged Carter offered her a “red-colored drink” he dubbed a “VIP juice” — even though she was underage — and claimed she now thinks it was a mix of alcohol and cranberry juice.
The “Quit Playing Games” singer, 42, allegedly ordered the then-teen to perform oral sex on him as she burst into tears, per the lawsuit.
Ruth also claimed that Carter took her to a bed on the tour bus, where he allegedly continued to sexually assault her — even though she was a virgin at the time.
The alleged victim said per the lawsuit that she got HPV, a sexually transmitted infection, after the incident. She is seeking monetary damages for the alleged crime.
Reps for Carter did not immediately return Page Six’s request for comment.
This is not the first time the boy band member has been accused of sexual misconduct.
In 2017, former Dream member Melissa Schuman claimed Carter sexually assaulted her when she was 18 years old and he was 22.
“I told him that I was a virgin and I didn’t want to have sex,” the “He Loves U Not” wrote in a blog post at the time. “I told him that I was saving myself for my future husband. I said it over and over again. He whispered in my ear as to entice me, ‘I could be your husband.’”
Carter previously said in response, “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.”
The “As Long As You Love Me” singer was not criminally charged.
The latest assault claims made against Nick come just weeks after he mourns the tragic loss of his younger brother Aaron Carter, who died on Nov. 5.
