This morning, Charlie Sheen revealed that he’s HIV positive in a candid interview with Today’s Matt Lauer.
The confirmation didn’t come as much of a shock as rumors that Sheen planned to go public his diagnosis had been circulating for weeks.
What did surprise many, however, was the revelation that Sheen had known about his condition for four years and had gone to great lengths to keep it a secret.
Unfortunately, the cover-up allegedly involved Sheen hiding his diagnosis from multiple sex partners, several of whom have since taken him to court.
Sheen did not go into detail about those cases, but did admit to having unprotected sex after being diagnosed.
“The two people I did that with were under the care of my doctor and completely warned ahead of time,” said the actor.
One of Sheen’s exes, porn star Bree Olson, stated that she is not HIV positive on her blog earlier this week.
As for his other partners, however, if they claim they were misled and their health was placed at risk, Sheen could be facing legal problems far more serious than a lawsuit.
TMZ is reporting that Sheen’s camp may be worried about criminal charges, as under California law, anyone who "willfully exposes another person" to a communicable disease is guilty.
In Sheen’s case, the crime would probably result in six months in prison, as no one has claimed that he showed any malicious intent to transmit the illness.
The 50-year-old says that he "always led with condoms and honesty" when it came to his condition, but he has reportedly settled several lawsuits from women who claim he lied to them with big cash payouts.
