Does Usher Raymond have a confession to make?
Three people, two of whom will only be identified as Jane Doe and John Doe in court papers, plan to accuse the pop star of exposing them to the sexually transmitted disease herpes in an lawsuit, says attorney Lisa Bloom. One woman, Quantasia Sharpton, stepped forward with Bloom Monday during a press conference.
Sharpton says she believes she was exposed after being cherry-picked out of a crowd following one of his concerts.
Sharpton said she attended one of Raymond's concerts for her 19th birthday and was selected to go backstage and meet him. "Later a security guard told me Usher had seen me backstage and was interested in me," Sharpton said. According to Sharpton, following the show she and several friends returned to their hotel when she received a call from a blocked number asking her where she was staying.
"About an hour later (Usher) arrived. We spoke for awhile then we engaged in sexual contact," Sharpton said. "He never warned me about any STDs. I never heard from him again. When I first heard he had herpes I couldn’t believe it."
The pop star has never said he has any sexually transmitted disease, and Sharpton says she has tested negative for herpes. But Sharpton contacted an attorney after hearing allegations that Raymond did have an STD prior to their sexual contact.
"I was upset by the reports because I never would have consented if I had known. I am doing this so he does not do it to anyone else," Sharpton said.
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Sharpton is represented by attorney Lisa Bloom, who is filing a lawsuit in California on behalf of Sharpton and two other individuals who also allege Raymond had sexual contact with them after he allegedly contracted an STD. Bloom says the lawsuit alleges Raymond, 38, contracted genital herpes before his encounters with her clients, which Bloom says occurred after 2012.
California law states individuals who are aware they have a STD may be guilty of a misdemeanor if they do not disclose their status to partners before engaging in sexual acts.
During the presser Bloom noted she does not know whether Raymond has the virus but is filing the lawsuit in order to get some certainty on the matter.
"We hope he has not knowingly endangered his sex partners," Bloom said. "No one is above the law, not even a popular celebrity."
Representatives for Raymond did not respond to calls for comment.
