Judge rules Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ accuser can’t continue civil lawsuit anonymously

a federal judge He decides that someone is accusing Jane Doe. related to Sean “Diddy” Combs He must reveal his identity or his case will be dismissed, according to court documents.

In the decision filed Wednesday and obtained by USA TODAY on Thursday, Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil wrote that the “fundamental issue” is whether Jane Doe’s accuser has a “substantial privacy interest” that outweighs the traditional and constitutionally established presumption of openness in judicial proceedings. “

In a lawsuit filed earlier this month, Jane Doe accuses Combs of raping her at a Manhattan hotel in 2004, when she was 19 years old.

But the judge said the plaintiff in the case, Jane Doe, “decided to file a lawsuit accusing a famous person of abhorrent behavior” 20 years ago and argued that “defendants have the right to defend themselves,” adding, “The public has a right to know who is using their courts.”

USA TODAY has reached out to attorneys for the plaintiff for comment. Combs’ team declined to comment.

The lawsuit was filed by Jane Doe in the Southern District of New York. one of dozens of lawsuits filed against the music mogul since last November. Earlier this month, Texas-based attorney Tony Buzbee announced a new wave of allegations against Combs, including Jane Doe and more than 100 accusers his firm plans to represent.

Last month, the “I’ll Miss You” hitmaker was arrested by federal authorities at a Manhattan hotel. a pair of federal raids targeting a subject as its subject sex trafficking investigation. He is currently in jail in New York after being denied bail twice and will remain there until his trial, scheduled for May 2025.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs charged minor sexual assault, multiple rapes in new civil cases

Vyskocil wrote that Jane Doe’s accuser must file a lawsuit on his own behalf by Nov. 13, or the case will be dismissed.

In her first lawsuit, the plaintiff says she met Combs during a photo shoot, and that the rapper invited her and her friend to his hotel for a private party.

Jane Doe said she was brought to a bedroom at the hotel and when she entered, she said Combs had been “aggressive” toward her and a friend and had touched them “forcibly.”

She claims the accuser’s friend performed oral sex on her “or else he would have had them both killed.” The lawsuit also alleges that Combs forced Jane Doe to remove her clothing under threat of violence and “fondled, harassed, and eventually raped Ms. Doe, while begging her to stop.”

Contributed by: Taijuan Moorman, Brendan Morrow

This article first appeared on USA TODAY: Diddy case: Judge rules Jane Doe can’t continue anonymously