A federal judge in Pittsburgh has ordered the woman accusing Butler County President Judge Thomas Doerr of sexual misconduct to prove she deserves anonymity.

In an order dated Oct. 26 U.S. District Court Judge Cathy Bissoon said the woman, who filed a lawsuit against Doerr on Oct. 10 under the pseudonym “Jane Doe,” has until Oct. 31 to file a written response explaining why her name should be withheld in court documents.

In her order, Bissoon notes that the woman, a probation and parole officer in Butler County, did not file a motion to proceed under a pseudonym, and the civil complaint she filed against Doerr does not contain “any allegations as to why (her) identity cannot be made public.

“To proceed anonymously a plaintiff must show 'both a fear of severe harm, and that the fear of severe harm is reasonable',” Bissoon's order reads, in part.

Bissoon's order cites multiple court decisions surrounding the use of pseudonyms by plaintiffs, and notes in particular a decision by the federal Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in which the judges held that courts may only permit the use of pseudonyms under “exceptional circumstances.”