Nick Carter: Prosecutor drops rape charges against Backstreet Boys singer almost a year after actress said he ‘forced her’ into sex
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Los Angeles prosecutors dropped rape charges against Backstreet Boys member Nick Carter on Tuesday, citing an expired statute of limitations.

NBC New York reports that Carter was accused rape last year by actress and former girl band pop singer, Melissa Schuman, who was 18 when the alleged incident occurred in 2003. Prosecutors said that given her age at the time, the statute of limitations for the charges she alleged expired in 2013.

Schuman said in an email to The Associated Press on Tuesday, stating she was “well aware” of the statute of limitations and knew that a conviction was unlikely. However, she spoke out because she wanted her case documented and her voice heard.

Since the statute of limitations expired, prosecutors declined to look into the validity of the case.

As CrimeOnline previously reported, Schuman wrote in a blog post  in November 2017, stating Carter forced her into having sex with him at his apartment. She said she wanted to file charges against him at the time, but her manager persuaded her against it after telling her she didn’t have the money to defend herself against Carter’s “powerful” litigator.

“I’d actually confided in my manager at that time about pressing charges,” Schuman wrote. “And I was told that [Carter] had the most powerful litigator in the country and that I didn’t have the money to pay for an attorney to essentially defend me, if he were to come after me.”

Schuman wrote that her manager also told her that bringing incident into the public eye would essentially ruin her singing career, which had only recently gotten off ground in 2000.

According the Schuman’s post, the incident happened when Carted invited her to his Santa Monica apartment after they both landed roles in the television movie, “Hollow.” She alleged when she arrived to his apartment, Carter immediately offered her liquor. Schuman reportedly brought her friend along, who hung out with Carter’s friend, an unknown male, at the apartment.

Schuman claimed Carter led her to his office, where they began kissing. She said she emphasized to Carter that she was a virgin and had no plans of going any further.

“He took my hand and led me down the hallway to the office. He went to his computer and started to play the music he was working on, he turned off the light and we sat there in the computer light listening to his new stuff. And naturally we started to kiss. He was aware that I was a virgin and that I held to religious conservative christian values. I was vocal about this. Everyone knew about this, including those who repped me.”

Afterward, Schuman claimed Carter picked her up and placed her on the bathroom counter, where he unbuttoned her pants. She said she told him to stop numerous times, but the singer didn’t listen, and continued until he took her pants off and proceeded to have oral sex with her—later demanding that she return the favor. He then allegedly took her to his bed, where she claimed he raped her, despite her pleading with him to stop.

Carter has maintained his innocence after learning of the accusation, claiming that the sexual encounter he had with Schuman was consensual.

“I am shocked and saddened by Ms. Schuman’s accusations. 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.”

Last year, Schuman pointed out that she didn’t come forward with the accusation in an attempt to get Carter’s money. Instead, she said it was something she held in for a long time, but with many others coming out during the #MeToo movement, she was inspired and given the strength and courage to share her story.

“I was empowered to share my story because of the brave women who shared their stories before me.”

[Feature Photo: Nick Carter via Ap/Rob Latour, Invision]