Backstreet Boys' Brian Littrell says Florida beach fight led to death threats against his family
Backstreet Boys member Brian Littrell — who has been entangled in multiple legal battles regarding trespassers targeting his private beachfront property in Florida over the past year — continues to receive disturbing threats from other members of the community against him and his family.
In September, attorneys for Brian and his wife, Leighanne Littrell, filed a complaint against a 67-year-old Florida woman named Carolyn Barrington Hill for allegedly trespassing on their Santa Rosa Beach property, according to legal documents obtained by Fox News Digital. Last month, a judge dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice.
On Feb. 25, the Littrells — who share a 23-year-old son, Baylee — filed an amended complaint against Hill and demanded a jury trial, citing emotional distress and economic damages in excess of $50,000.
The initial complaint claimed Hill "set out to antagonize, bully, and harass the Littrell family by frequently trespassing" on their property.
On March 17, Hill filed a motion to dismiss the amended complaint. Fox News Digital has reached out to Hill's attorneys for comment.
While Hill has allegedly been the most vocal protester, the Littrell family said they have been victims of other naysayers in the community who continue to harass and threaten their livelihood.
"It will eventually come out, but all the pictures and the documents that we have from social media and the threats, the physical threats to my family … they've talked about burning our house down, burning it down," Brian told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview. "They've talked about bringing guns. They said, ‘Yeah, guns are allowed in Florida.’ They want to spray us with mace. They want to punch my teeth out, you know, it's like, it's crazy."
"It's scary to have to be in this small community with a lot of angry people honestly and then making us out to be these monsters that we're not," Leighanne added. "We love this town, but now we don't know where to eat because of who hates us."
"Servers, they're even telling their servers like spit in our food," said Brian.
Brian said he and his family are "good people" and only want to keep the peace and "educate people on the facts of what they should and shouldn't do, the protocol, the misinformation that's out there."
"We're not trying to take something that's not ours. We just want to enjoy the sand," he said.
Littrell's attorney, Peter Ticktin of Ticktin Law Group, said, "I know Brian is referring to the beach as a piece of sand, but the fact of the matter is, that's his backyard. That's his private backyard."
"For people to decide to camp out in his backyard is no different than if they were to camp out in anybody else's backyard," Ticktin emphasized.
Ticktin said the community members are pushing this narrative that Littrell is "trying to steal the property."
"My client is an innocent purchaser for value," Ticktin said. "[Brian and Leighanne] wanted, this is what they worked so hard for. This is where their talent was able to give them the success that they were able to achieve. And here it was going to manifest itself into the home of their dreams."
"The American dream is being able to buy a home and buying a home that you really, really aspired to have. And finally, he gets to that level. They get to this thing. They're happy as can be, and then, all of a sudden, we've got these characters that come on the scene to bring drama where they should have, you know, peaceful and quiet enjoyment of their property."
WATCH: Backstreet Boys’ Brian Littrell’s attorney says singer’s Florida beach battle is an ‘assault on American values’
"They've got public beaches," he continued. "They don't need this beach, which is a private beach. And that matches the private beach, but in the middle of a bunch of other private beaches, so, you know, surrounded by private beaches. It's not bordering on a public beach where people simply make a mistake. No, this is an assault on, on American values. That's what this really is."
Despite the ongoing legalities, Brian said he and his family continue to focus on their many blessings.
"My life is blessed," he said. "I don't have any, any worries. You know, I make music that brings people together, right? This is my job… just don't come to my backyard and slander me because I couldn't do that to you. And that's all I'm saying. The facts are the facts."
"We've been attacked for close to a little over two years now that this has been going on, and I don't want to give anybody my joy. I don't want somebody to take away my joy as well. So that to me as a father, as a husband, as provider, it's like, that's my job."
"I got to keep my joy and I have to figure out a new way to look at it," he said. "Every time we come down here, you know, I fall back in love with how it makes me feel."
In July, Littrell filed a lawsuit against Walton County, accusing the sheriff’s department of refusing to keep public beachgoers off his private beach.
"This is a truth issue. It's a fairness issue of the backyard of my place being a sanctuary," Littrell, 51, told Fox News' Dana Perino during an appearance on "America's Newsroom" last year.
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"This lady in the video that you showed, traveled past two or three public beaches just to get to this place to cause issues for my family," the musician continued, referring to the bodycam footage of a Walton County police officer asking a beachgoer to leave Littrell's property. "It's property rights, this is what we're talking about. I bought this place many years ago, and they obviously know who I am. They're coming after my family. They're coming after my son, they're coming after my wife. You know, we play fair. We should be on here talking about the success of Backstreet Boys, but we're talking about people invading my privacy. It's unfortunate."
Brian said his personal legal issues have affected his career, even as his successful Las Vegas residency with the Backstreet Boys continues to add shows.
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"It changes my perspective a little bit because of just the unsafety that you feel," he admitted. "Being on stage for me is a peaceful, exciting, exuberant … like I mean, you name it. That's my job, and it's my joy, but yet it makes you think like, you know, there's 17,000 people here tonight, and you know a couple of them might not like me. And the world we live in today is a lot different than it was when the Backstreet Boys started in the '90s."
"It just kind of makes you a little more well-rounded, a little bit more thoughtful because you have to think ahead," he said.
But Brian and Leighanne continue to lean on what matters most to them: their faith.
"We are law-abiding Christians and people can continue to hate," he said. "It's just disheartening. So for me, we try to take the high road. We try to inform people what they're trying to do. And it's that simple for us. It's really that simple. I don't tell anybody how to live their life. I'm not going to be out there preaching to people because that's just not my place. But I know what [God] does in my life, and I know how it makes our lives better. So that's something that I'm going to share."