CNN
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In a extremely uncommon authorized battle, an nameless plaintiff who describes themselves as “a celeb and public determine who resides in Tennessee” is urging a federal courtroom in Mississippi to declare a sexual assault accuser’s allegations unfaithful and cease her from additional publicizing them — earlier than she’s even filed a lawsuit — claiming that she is making an attempt to extort and defame him with “false allegations” that may “irreparably hurt” his fame and profession.
The plaintiff’s lawsuit, which was filed in mid-September, prompted his accuser to fireside again this week, opposing the superstar’s efforts to remain nameless.
The feminine accuser, recognized within the filings as “Jane Roe,” is asking the courtroom to disclaim the request from the high-profile “John Doe” to proceed beneath a pseudonym, arguing in her submitting that he’s an “alleged sexual assault predator” who shouldn’t obtain particular therapy.
“Mr. Doe believes that he’s entitled to the identical safety victims obtain – to not stop pointless re-traumatization, however relatively, to keep up his superstar ‘fame,’” the accuser’s lawyer wrote in a response temporary this week, which was obtained by CNN.
“Our civil courtroom system is designed to resolve disputes and supply injured events a way of redress,” Roe’s submitting states. “It’s presupposed to be a degree taking part in subject. The system isn’t in place to permit rich wrongdoers the power to run work-arounds on sexual assault victims who try to carry perpetrators accountable. That is exactly what Mr. Doe is asking the courtroom to assist him do.”
An lawyer for John Doe didn’t reply to CNN’s request for remark.
‘A star and public determine’
Apart from being described in his criticism as a “superstar and public determine who resides in Tennessee,” no different particulars concerning John Doe have been revealed. In Jane Roe’s submitting, she describes Doe as having “hundreds of thousands of followers” and “multi-millionaire sources.”
Roe, in her submitting, describes herself as a “skilled make-up artist and hair stylist, who has labored within the music business” for greater than three many years. She claimed she labored “periodically” for Doe over 15 years and has achieved his hair and make-up, in addition to his spouse’s.
In her memorandum, Roe mentioned she plans to publicly file her criticism this week – during which she would identify the superstar as a defendant – beneath California’s Sexual Abuse and Cowl-Up Accountability Act.
In his criticism, Doe claims Roe’s lawyer despatched him a “confidential” demand letter “alleging a litany of sexual misconduct by Plaintiff starting from allegations of sexual ‘grooming,’ creation of a sexually hostile work atmosphere, undesirable sexual touching, and sexual assault,” after he declined Roe’s request for “salaried employment and medical advantages.”
In her submitting, Roe alleges that Doe shared his sexual fantasies together with her, groped her breasts, as soon as walked out of the bathe bare and compelled her to the touch him and raped her throughout a piece journey in Los Angeles in 2019.
Doe mentioned that Roe has tried to extort him for hundreds of thousands of {dollars} by way of “unfaithful, lewd allegations” and “outrageous conduct.”
“Defendant’s allegations aren’t true,” Doe’s lawsuit states. “Defendant is properly conscious, nevertheless, of the substantial, irreparable injury such false allegations would do to Plaintiff’s well-earned fame as an honest and caring particular person, together with the unavoidable injury to his household and the irreparable injury to his profession and livelihood that may outcome if she made good on her risk to ‘publicly file’ her fabricated lawsuit.”
The superstar plaintiff additionally claimed in his lawsuit that his accuser alleged that he “deliberate to rent somebody to homicide her,” which he denied.
Doe’s go well with asks the courtroom to declare Roe’s sexual misconduct allegations unfaithful, pay compensatory and punitive damages and be prevented from additional publicizing the claims.
Based on Roe’s submitting, the superstar filed his lawsuit after he discovered that his accuser was planning to publicly file her personal lawsuit, which got here after she tried to settle privately.
“Mr. Doe commenced this frivolous motion after he discovered that Ms. Roe meant to carry him accountable for his conduct and sexual violence,” the submitting states, with Roe’s lawyer writing that the superstar preemptively submitting his personal criticism quantities to an “apparent try and additional management and bully his sexual assault sufferer.”
“Mr. Doe is determined to forestall his hundreds of thousands of followers from studying in regards to the horrific issues he has mentioned and achieved to a junior feminine worker who did nothing to deserve such therapy,” her lawyer mentioned in courtroom paperwork this week.
The plaintiff’s request to proceed beneath a pseudonym requires approval from the courtroom.
Authorized specialists say that the superstar plaintiff isn’t prone to prevail on this case, noting that the argument of reputational hurt isn’t sturdy sufficient, given that the majority all lawsuits comprise some part of embarrassment or humiliation.
“Courts usually err on the facet of transparency, and don’t like to hide litigation from public view— absent compelling circumstances,” CNN authorized analyst Joey Jackson mentioned. “Shielding allegations from public view is extraordinarily disfavored. Due to this fact, a courtroom is prone to reject any try at forcing litigants to battle anonymously. The courtroom could require additional authorized filings or a listening to earlier than making the ultimate determination, however the superstar right here faces a serious hurdle in holding this out of the general public area.”
Jackson added that any accused particular person can file counterclaims for defamation.
“That’s the treatment for anybody dealing with false accusation — not hiding it from the general public,” he mentioned.
When contacted by CNN, the girl’s lawyer, Douglas H. Wigdor, mentioned the preemptive criticism was an “unprecedented try and recreation the judicial system” to keep away from being publicly named.
“Our judicial system was designed to be clear, and it has been my expertise that the submitting of sexual assault complaints usually results in different victims who’ve suffered in silence coming ahead,” Wigdor informed CNN. “I’ve been lucky through the years to signify brave survivors who’ve taken step one in holding highly effective individuals accountable for his or her actions by submitting a public criticism and on this matter, we intend on doing simply that.”