A woman accusing NBA star Derrick Rose of rape in a civil lawsuit cannot remain anonymous in court, a federal judge ruled Tuesday in Los Angeles.
The 30-year-old woman, who has been known as Jane Doe in court documents, claims Rose and two of his friends raped her when she was too drunk to consent in 2013.
The woman’s name will be used in front of the jury to avoid the impression of bias against Rose and the other defendants, Judge Michael Fitzgerald ruled. The trial is scheduled to begin on Oct. 4.
But many news organizations may stick to their policies of withholding the names of alleged victims of sexual abuse.
An attorney for the woman told The Huffington Post that he expects the media attention to be difficult for his client.
“She’s going to be tested and that’s why we wanted to keep her name out for as long as we could,” said her attorney, Waukeen McCoy. “We hope that she can go through this process and not be slut-shamed and not be targeted by people who are outsiders who don’t know the facts of the case.”
But McCoy said the decision was expected. “It’s a fair ruling.”
Rose, a former MVP guard entering his first season with the New York Knicks, claims the encounter with the woman was consensual. But he struggled to define consent when questioned by the woman’s attorney in an earlier deposition.
In calling for the woman’s name to be released, an attorney for Rose had argued it would harm his client if the accuser were anonymous in front of the jurors. She has also given multiple anonymous interviews to media outlets.
“She’s going to be a believable witness,” said McCoy. The woman, an ex-girlfriend of Rose, is suing him for $21.5 million.
Attorneys for Rose did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s requests for comment.