CARMEL (IN)
Current [Carmel, IN]
July 15, 2026
By Ann Marie Shambaugh
The defendants in a civil suit that alleges unchecked bullying of a student at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic School in Carmel have requested a judge reconsider a decision to allow the adult plaintiffs to use a pseudonym.
Attorneys for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lafayette-In-Indiana; Trudy Schouten Young, diocese superintendent of schools; the Rev. Richard Doerr, OLMC pastor; OLMC Principal Timothy Fletcher; and OLMC Assistant Principal Deanna Cotter filed the motion to reconsider June 30.
The lawsuit, filed by the student’s parents, accuses OLMC officials and the diocese of failing to adequately address and prevent intensifying harassment of their son that became sexual in nature. The parents are identified as James Doe and Julie Doe in the suit.
The defendants argue that pseudonymity is an “extraordinary, disfavored exception” and that the plaintiffs’ seeking media coverage of the case is a contradiction to “any desire for privacy.”
“They demanded publicity, actively seeking widespread news coverage that not only broadcasted their complaint’s most ‘sensitive’ allegations to the general public, but added counsel’s inflammatory commentary going so far as to invoke Jesus’ name in support of their claims — thus implicitly accusing Defendant of not only legal negligence, but also religious malfeasance and hypocrisy,” the motion states.
The defendants do not object to pseudonymity for the student, because he is a minor. Attorneys for the plaintiffs argued in their response to the motion that identifying the parents would naturally identify the student.
“Plaintiffs brought a matter of genuine public concern to light while doing exactly what the law encourages: protecting a child from being personally identified as the victim of sexual harassment and assault,” the response states. “The Diocese’s motion would punish that responsible course by exposing the very minor the Court has protected by making his parents’ names public.”
Current contacted the diocese for comment on the motion but did not receive a response before time of publication.
Tammy Meyer, an attorney for the plaintiffs, described the defendants’ motion to disallow pseudonyms as “deeply disappointing.”
“Families should never have to fear that seeking justice will expose their children to even more trauma,” Meyer stated. “If schools respond this way when parents speak up, other families may think twice before reporting bullying. That should concern every parent.”
A hearing on the motion to reconsider pseudonymity is set for 10 a.m. Aug. 5 in Hamilton County Superior Court 2.