A Houston man, who is facing allegations of holding a pregnant woman captive for several years, was released from jail on bond with conditions that include a GPS monitor and a strict curfew, according to The Houston Chronicle. Lee Carter, a 52-year-old rapper and real estate broker, was charged with aggravated kidnapping after a woman, allegedly pregnant at her capture, accused him of imprisoning her in a room and subjecting her to sexual assault and drug use.
At a court appearance on Monday, Carter, being out on a $100,000 bond, did not go before Judge Veronica Nelson in Harris County's 482nd District Court. Given the grave nature of the accusations, including the woman's claim she was forced to survive on junk food with limited freedom, the case is now being handled by the Harris County District Attorney's trafficking division. The woman's connection to Carter, as claimed by the defense, complicates an already tangled narrative—the accused insists she is the mother of his son, suggesting a consensual bond distorted by the legal process.
Appearing without counsel and declining to speak at the courthouse, Carter's representation comes in the form of George Powell, as detailed by court dockets. Powell, a former district court judge, portrays the relationship between Carter and the alleged victim quite differently. "They've been together for years in a mutually consensual relationship that is 100% legal," Powell stated, in a statement obtained by ABC13. "The complainant and my client have a three-year-old son together, from whom I've already been provided the birth certificate," Powell added.
The woman’s encounter with Carter allegedly began while she was panhandling in south Houston. Contrary to the defense’s account, the police, after her rescue, found her weighing just 70 pounds. Houston police have been endeavoring since Carter's arrest to reestablish contact with the woman, whose mental history issues Powell says Carter has always supported. As the storyline diverges into the realms of a potentially darker reality or a misunderstood relationship, the court is actively deliberating the possibility of raising Carter's bond higher, while an arraignment hearing is set for February 13.
