- "Love Is Blind" star Renee Poche said she was set up with "a walking red flag" on the Netflix show.
- In an explosive lawsuit, Poche says she was "utterly terrified" of ex-fiancé Carter Wall.
"Love Is Blind" contestant Renee Poche alleged that her ex-fiancé Carter Wall exhibited violent, emotionally abusive behavior toward her and other members of the cast and crew.
In an explosive lawsuit filed Tuesday, she said he should never have passed the Netflix show's background checks. (Wall and Netflix did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.)
Her suit asks the court to nullify the contract she signed to appear on the show. It also asks for unspecified damages from Netflix and Delirium TV, the production company behind the hit reality television series.
Poche said she was set up with "a walking red flag" in Wall, per the lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, and reviewed by Business Insider.
Poche is suing the two companies for intentional infliction of emotional distress, and violating various California labor and civic codes.
The complaint alleges that when "Love Is Blind" season five began filming in April 2022, Wall "was not only broke and jobless but also homeless, violent, estranged from his parents, and actively addicted to amphetamines and alcohol."
The suit said that Poche went through an "extensive" and "rigorous" process of interviewing, screening, background checks, and psychological examinations before being cast.
Given such an intense process, the suit says "there is little doubt" that Delirium "had knowledge of these troubling issues" in advance.
Poche says she hit it off with Wall in the pods (where contestants can hear but not see each other), and agreed to become engaged to him.
But she claims that she later found out that the 30-year-old former football player had "lied about almost everything" and "was, by any objective measure, far from 'marriage material.'"
"Wall's erratic and alarming behavior and emotional instability became glaringly obvious to Poche and the production staff," the suit reads. "Poche became utterly terrified to be around him and made her misgivings clear to production."
Poche alleges that production staff warned her to "ensure Wall had no access to firearms or other weapons, because they were concerned he would hurt himself, her, or others."
Poche, a veterinarian, also claims that Wall "regularly berated" her, "stole from the set or places they visited," and "solicited others to buy painkillers and amphetamines for him." The suit says that one camera operator quit the show after being "physically threatened" by Wall.
Despite her concerns, Poche claims she was told she would face legal action if she left the show, or "refused to move forward with the engagement."
"Poche was utterly terrified of Wall. Nonetheless, she was forced to spend long stretches of time alone with him—every minute of which she felt unsafe," says the suit.
Poche also alleges that producers "admonished her for 'not giving him a chance' and encouraged her to continue filming."
Poche claims that she "began to spiral physically, mentally, and emotionally" as a result, but moved forward with the engagement.
Poche previously told POPSUGAR that she and Wall got engaged and were filmed until their wedding day, where she rejected him at the altar.
The scenes, and almost all of Poche and Wall's storyline beyond the pods, were edited out of the series.
"Although Poche was told that it was because production did not want her to have to relive her experience with Wall, that explanation seems obviously false given the complete lack of concern for her well-being and safety throughout," the suit states. "Poche is informed and believes, and based thereon alleges, that Wall threatened to commit suicide if footage of him was aired."
Poche filed the suit in response to a $4 million arbitration case Delirium initiated against her for violating the terms of a nondisclosure agreement she signed.