Ex-girlfriend sues HIV-positive Charlie Sheen for assault and negligence

CALIFORNIA: A former girlfriend of Charlie Sheen on Thursday sued the actor for assault, negligence and emotional distress, saying they had sex at least five times before he disclosed he was HIV positive.

Scottine Ross, 26, who said she met Sheen while she was working as a porn actress and later became engaged to him, also claimed the actor forced her to have an abortion after she became pregnant last year, and had kicked and choked her on numerous occasions during their one-year relationship.

The lawsuit, filed in California Superior Court, is the first known legal action against Sheen since he revealed in a TV interview in November he had been diagnosed as HIV-positive four years ago.

The former star of TV comedy Two and a Half Men, 50, said at the time he had decided to speak out because he had paid some $10 million to people for their silence.

Sheen, who has been divorced three times and has dated many porn stars, also said it was “impossible” that he had transmitted the virus to anyone else. He said he “always led with condoms and honesty when it came to my condition”.

His attorney, Martin Singer, said on Thursday Sheen plans to “vigorously defend the lawsuit filed by Scottine Ross. We are confident Mr Sheen will prevail in this action”.

Ross’s lawsuit claims she met Sheen in November 2013, when he paid $10 000 to have sex with her. They had sex at least five times before Ross discovered his medication for the treatment of HIV, she said.

They later fell in love and had unprotected sex “like a normal couple”.

Ross alleged several violent outbursts ocurred during their relationship, including being kicked, punched, put in a chokehold and having an unloaded gun pointed at her.

Under California’s criminal statute a person who knowingly exposes another to HIV through unprotected sex must be proved to have had a deliberate intent to infect them.

The law means criminal prosecutions are rare, but civil cases can be brought on a range of grounds, including negligence, emotional distress or sexual battery. – Reuters

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