Aaron Carter's Family Settles Walgreens Wrongful Death Claims as Dentist Faces Trial

The family of late pop singer Aaron Carter has settled its wrongful death claims against Walgreens and Santa Monica Medical Plaza Pharmacy over Xanax prescriptions filled before his 2022 death, leaving a dentist as the sole remaining defendant in a lawsuit headed to trial in January 2027.

Attorneys for Carter's estate disclosed the agreements in an October 15, 2026, court filing, stating that the parties had reached a settlement resolving all claims against both pharmacies. The financial terms remain confidential. The estate previously settled with a psychiatry clinic in May, narrowing the litigation to allegations against dentist Jason Mirabile, who prescribed Xanax to the singer.

Marc Lazo, the family's attorney, said on October 21, 2026, that the estate was satisfied with the outcome after lengthy negotiations. He welcomed the pharmacies' decision to resolve the claims and said the remaining case against Mirabile was scheduled for trial in early January.

Carter's former fiancée, Melanie Martin, filed the wrongful death lawsuit in 2023 on behalf of their son, Princeton "Prince" Lyric Carter, who is now four years old. The complaint accused medical providers of prescribing excessive amounts of Xanax and alleged that the pharmacies continued dispensing the medication despite warning signs that the singer was abusing it.

Carter, 34, was found dead in a bathtub at his home in Lancaster, California, on November 5, 2022. The Los Angeles County medical examiner determined that he drowned after becoming incapacitated by the effects of difluoroethane, a gas found in compressed-air products, and alprazolam, the generic form of Xanax. His death was ruled an accident.

The defendants have disputed the estate's allegations that their handling of Carter's prescriptions contributed to his death. In court filings, they argued that the amount of Xanax detected in his system was insufficient to cause unconsciousness and attributed his death primarily to inhaling difluoroethane.

The medical examiner's findings identified both substances as contributing to Carter's drowning. The wrongful death lawsuit separately raises whether the medical providers and pharmacies breached their duties of care and whether any alleged failures contributed to his death.

In May 2026, the estate reached a confidential settlement with psychiatrist John Faber and his practice, Amen Clinics. Attorneys for the clinic maintained that its treatment met applicable standards of care and disputed claims that its prescriptions caused Carter's death. The agreements with Walgreens and Santa Monica Medical Plaza Pharmacy now leave Mirabile facing the remaining claims.

As the January trial approaches, Mirabile's attorneys are preparing to challenge the damages sought on behalf of Carter's son by introducing evidence about the singer's relationship with the child.

In pretrial filings, the dentist's legal team indicated that it intends to portray Carter as an absentee father, arguing that his limited involvement in his son's life undermines claims for lost financial support and companionship. His attorneys also seek testimony from representatives of the Department of Children and Family Services, which allegedly became involved in a custody dispute between Carter and Martin before the singer's death.

The proposed evidence could affect the amount of damages the child may recover. Wrongful death claims can include financial support the deceased parent would have provided and compensation for the loss of parental love, care, and companionship. A disputed parenting history may be relevant to those calculations, but it does not automatically eliminate a surviving child's right to pursue compensation.

Lazo has criticized the proposed defense, accusing Mirabile's attorneys of attempting to damage Carter's reputation rather than address allegations concerning the dentist's prescribing practices. He said the family remains disappointed that the remaining defendant has continued fighting the claims while the other parties have reached settlements.

Mirabile continues to contest the lawsuit, which alleges that his prescribing decisions contributed to Carter's death. The estate must still establish the dentist's alleged negligence and its connection to the fatal drowning to obtain a judgment against him.

Carter rose to fame in the late 1990s after opening for the Backstreet Boys, whose members include his older brother, Nick Carter. His 2000 album, Aaron's Party (Come Get It), reached No. 4 on the Billboard 200, establishing him as a teen pop star. In later years, he publicly discussed his struggles with substance abuse and underwent treatment before his death.

The remaining wrongful death claims against Mirabile are scheduled for trial in early January 2027, when the parties could present evidence concerning Carter's prescriptions, the circumstances of his death and the damages sought on behalf of his son.