A woman identified as Jane Doe in legal documents has formally recanted her accusations against rapper and entrepreneur Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter. On Thursday, she submitted a declaration to a federal court in Manhattan asserting that all her original claims against Carter were false.
In the filing, Doe stated that Carter never raped her and that she has neither met nor spoken to him. She clarified that Carter never engaged in inappropriate conduct toward her and indicated that, to her knowledge, the allegations were submitted by attorneys without any independent investigation.
The case began in 2024 when Doe, represented by Texas attorney Tony Buzbee, filed a civil lawsuit claiming that Carter and media mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs drugged and raped her in 2000 when she was 13 years old. Buzbee was known for filing numerous similar lawsuits against Combs. Both Carter and Combs denied the allegations at the time, with Carter specifically describing the suit as part of an extortion campaign. The lawsuit against Combs and Carter was subsequently dropped in February 2025.
Following the dismissal of her initial claims, Carter sued Buzbee and Doe in February 2025 for malicious prosecution and defamation. This week’s filing has resulted in Doe’s dismissal as a defendant from Carter’s lawsuit. NPR reached out to the Buzbee Law Firm for comment but did not receive a response.
These developments occur during a period of significant professional success for Carter, who is currently marking the 30th anniversary of his debut album ‘Reasonable Doubt’ with concerts at Yankee Stadium and a new HBO docuseries titled ‘JAŸ-Z In 8’.
Does this mean his legal team can drop the defamation suit completely or will they still go after Buzbee?
It is wild how lawyers can file baseless claims just for attention now. This is becoming a serious problem.
Finally some clarity. The timeline was always way too suspicious for anyone to take seriously.