UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO

: JANE DOE 1 ET AL., : CASE NO. 1:22-cv-00059 : Plaintiffs, : : ORDER & OPINON v. : [Resolving Doc. 14] : BEDFORD CITY SCHOOL : DISTRICT BOARD OF : EDUCATION ET AL., : : Defendants.

JAMES S. GWIN, UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT JUDGE:

In this case concerning a high school teacher-coach who was convicted of sexually assaulting a then-15-year-old high school student, Plaintiffs move to litigate under pseudonym.1 Defendants did not oppose the motion. Although a complaint generally must state the names of all parties, the Sixth Circuit has held that plaintiffs may be excused from this requirement when their “privacy interests substantially outweigh the presumption of open judicial proceedings.”2 In conducting that inquiry, courts examine the following factors: (1) whether the plaintiffs seeking anonymity are suing to challenge governmental activity; (2) whether prosecution of the suit will compel the plaintiffs to disclose information “of the utmost intimacy”; (3) whether the litigation compels plaintiffs to disclose an intention to violate the law, thereby risking criminal prosecution; and (4) whether the plaintiffs are children.3

1 Doc. 14. The assault occurred in 2018. Doc. 1. 2 ,

, 560 (6th Cir. 2004). 3 (quoting

, 185–86 (5th Cir. 1981)). The Court finds that the factors do not support filing under pseudonym. While the first two factors weigh in favor of Plaintiff’s position, courts have determined that “the potential for embarrassment or public humiliation does not, without more, justify a request

for anonymity.”4 And, the third and fourth factors go against Plaintiff. Although Plaintiff was a minor when the teacher-coach assaulted her, Plaintiff is no longer a minor, and “the concern that courts display for children of a tender age and their vulnerable status does not currently apply to [plaintiff].”5 According, the Court DENIES the motion to litigate under pseudonym and ORDERS Plaintiff to re-file the complaint consistent with this Order and Opinion.

IT IS SO ORDERED. Dated: June 17, 2022 JAMES S. GWIN UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

4 , 21-cv-00272,

, at *4 (M.D. Tenn. June 28, 2021) (quoting , 20-cv-5997,

, at *1 (E.D.N.Y. Dec. 10, 2020)).