WASHINGTON, DC (August 11, 2025) – The National Center on Sexual Exploitation Law Center is fighting back against a Nevada judge’s ruling requiring a survivor of sex trafficking to disclose her identity to the public if she wishes to continue to pursue charges against her abusers. NCOSE filed its opening arguments in its appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on August 8, seeking to reverse this ruling.
“We are fighting back against an unjust ruling denying Jane Doe’s right to proceed using a pseudonym and her right to a protective order. The judge had ruled that she must disclose her identity to the public. If she were to do so, Doe’s very life would be threatened. This ruling has extensive ramifications for other sex trafficking survivors who seek justice against their abusers. No one should have to choose between their personal safety or pursuing claims against their abusers,” said Christen Price, senior legal counsel, National Center on Sexual Exploitation.
Plaintiff Jane Doe was sex trafficked in legal Nevada brothel prostitution between 2017-2023; having been induced to engage in commercial sex acts through force, fraud, and coercion – including through psychological manipulation, constraints on her movement, and debt. Doe’s lawsuit was filed against four of Nevada’s infamous legal brothels (Chicken Ranch, Desert Rose, Bella’s, Mustang Ranch), and Mustang Ranch brothel owner/former Storey County Commissioner Lance Gilman for sex trafficking her, and against their county governments (Nye, Elko, and Storey Counties), along with Nevada’s Governor Joseph Lombardo and Attorney General Aaron Ford, for facilitating the abuses. The lawsuit asserts the defendants violated the 13th Amendment’s ban on slavery and involuntary servitude and the Trafficking Victims Protection Act.
“Sex trafficking survivors are commonly granted pseudonymity when seeking justice against their abusers. The defendants already have a right to learn Doe’s name later on in the case, which we are not disputing. What the defendants want is her name now and publicly so that they can shame her in the media – they even admitted this in their own filings. But survivors should not be tried in a court of public opinion. We are seeking a reversal of the court’s previous opinion so that Doe can safely pursue justice,” concluded Price.
The NCOSE Law Center has been fighting for justice for survivors who have experienced sex trafficking or abuse and currently represents survivors of sexual exploitation in litigation against X (formerly Twitter), Pornhub, XVideos, and XHamster.
About National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE)
Founded in 1962, the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) is the leading national non-profit organization exposing the links between all forms of sexual exploitation such as child sexual abuse, prostitution, sex trafficking and the public health harms of pornography.
To schedule an interview with NCOSE, please email press@ncose.com.
