Blake Shelton Denies Drinking Problem in Tabloid Lawsuit Documents
Blake Shelton is currently embroiled in a lawsuit with the company that publishes the newsstand tabloid InTouch Weekly, and in court documents that have recently leaked, the country superstar and television personality vehemently denies their reports that he has a serious drinking problem.
Shelton filed suit against the celebrity gossip publication in October of 2015, just weeks after they published a story alleging that he had checked into rehab after his binge drinking had contributed to the dissolution of his marriage to Miranda Lambert. The couple announced their divorce in July of 2015 after four years of marriage.
In court documents obtained by Entertainment Tonight, the singer and coach on The Voice flatly declares he is not struggling with alcohol abuse. He is suing Bauer Media for $2 million over the story, claiming defamation and false invasion of privacy.
"Not only was I not in rehab or headed to rehab when it was published, but I also do not have a drinking problem," he states. "All of this was false and went so far beyond prior stories about me that I had previously denied with humor."
The country star adds that he was "furious" when he saw himself depicted as "a man who cannot function, cannot do his job and is on the brink of death without treatment."
He goes on to refute the allegations in the story one by one, writing, "I do not drink excessively, binge drink, or have a drinking problem. I do not, as the Rehab Story alleges, drink vodka before 11AM I am never drunk, intoxicated, or unable to perform my job on The Voice or elsewhere."
"I do not slur my words or stumble when I drink," Shelton adds. "I have never urinated on a mailbox in public, or otherwise. I did not start drinking at 14. I did not start drinking as a teenager. I did not start drinking to cope with my brother's death."
Shelton's marriage to Lambert was always the subject of intense tabloid scrutiny, and he also challenges InTouch Weekly's report that he engaged in drunken indiscretions that helped bring about their split.
"My ex-wife Miranda Lambert did not catch me with a bunch of naked women in our Tennessee home one night," he states. "Ms. Lambert did not tape me while drinking and then show me a video of myself the following day. During our marriage, Ms. Lambert never begged, demanded, or asked me to go to rehab ... I did not handle my first divorce by drinking, nor has my drinking increased or escalated since my divorce from Ms. Lambert."
Bauer Media filed a motion in February to dismiss Shelton's suit, citing his own tweets about drinking as evidence that he "has staked his reputation on heavy drinking." Shelton acknowledges that in his declaration, calling it "part of my schtick with my fans" and saying that it "in no way indicates that I have an actual problem with alcohol."
InTouch Weekly declined to comment on Shelton's court declaration when ET contacted them. Ironically, Shelton has become the subject of even greater tabloid coverage since beginning a relationship with rocker Gwen Stefani, which was confirmed on the day of the CMA Awards in November.
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