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Woman accusing Alexander brothers of rape can't be anonymous, judge says
By
Samantha Max
Published Mar 31, 2025
Modified Mar 31, 2025
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Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images
By
Samantha Max
Published Mar 31, 2025
Modified Mar 31, 2025
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A woman named in a recent lawsuit only as Jane Doe describes having a panic attack after two brothers raped her at their New York City apartment in 2011.
She says in the lawsuit she met high-profile real estate agents Alon and Oren Alexander and their brother Tal at social events, and accepted an invitation to hang out. When she got to their apartment, she says, Alon and Tal Alexander made her drink cocktails that she later realized had been spiked with date rape drugs. She recalls one of the brothers holding her down and sexually assaulting her, then another, as she pleaded with them to stop. Oren Alexander smirked as she left the apartment and asked her, “How was it?” according to the lawsuit.
All three brothers pleaded not guilty earlier this year to federal sex trafficking charges, with prosecutors saying they collectively raped dozens of women over the course of several years.
Though Jane Doe filed the lawsuit anonymously, a judge ruled earlier this month that she must reveal her identity to the public if she wants to keep pursuing it. The brothers she accuses of rape, Alon and Tal Alexander, and their lawyers know the woman’s name, but it has not been revealed in court papers. The court’s decision cites several similar recent rulings in New York City sexual assault cases against high-profile alleged perpetrators, including Kevin Spacey, Harvey Weinstein and Sean Combs.
“Ms. Doe has been forced to live with the fact of these sexual assaults for her entire adult life, and it has caused her irreparable emotional and physical pain,” her lawsuit states.
Several attorneys who regularly represent alleged sexual assault victims told Gothamist the ruling could discourage survivors from seeking justice in the courts — which they said many are already wary to do.
“If courts are willing to undo anonymity, to force the victims to move forward with their names, it may have a chilling effect on other survivors coming forward against that perpetrator and others,” said Anna Kull, an attorney who represents plaintiffs in sexual abuse cases. She did not file any of the lawsuits against the Alexander brothers.
Alon and Oren Alexander are twins who were prominent agents in the ultra-luxury real estate industry, while their older brother Tal worked as an executive at his family’s private security firm, according to court records. Federal prosecutors have accused the Alexander brothers of using their wealth and social status to lure women to their homes or luxury travel destinations. Then, according to prosecutors, one or more of the brothers would drug and sexually assault them. The allegations span at least a decade, from New York City and the Hamptons to Miami and Moscow.
A federal grand jury indicted Alon, Oren and Tal Alexander on sex trafficking charges last year, and they pleaded not guilty in February. All three remain jailed.
At least 19 women have pending lawsuits in New York civil courts accusing one or more of the brothers of sexual abuse. More than half of them brought their lawsuits under pseudonyms.
Jane Doe’s lawyers asked a judge to let their client remain anonymous in court proceedings to protect her mental health and safety. The brothers have garnered widespread media attention, and the lawyers said it would be “disastrous” for Jane Doe “to have these sensitive and horrific experiences play out in a public forum.” They also said protecting their client’s privacy could help other victims feel more comfortable to come forward.
But U.S. District Judge Jeannette Vargas ruled that plaintiffs in sexual assault cases shouldn’t always be allowed proceed under a pseudonym and that Jane Doe didn’t provide enough evidence of the harm she would face if her name became public. She also said granting the woman anonymity would put the defendants and the public at a disadvantage.
Deanna Paul and Jason Goldman, attorneys for the Alexander brothers, said accusers' attorneys are sensationalizing allegations for publicity.
“Plaintiffs’ attorneys have accused the Alexanders of criminal acts — in sensationalized and publicity-hunting fashion — and demanded massive financial compensation,” they wrote.
Jane Doe’s lawyers declined to comment for this story.
Competing interests in sexual abuse lawsuits
A flood of lawsuits poured in against the brothers in the last few months, after their arrest. Many were filed under New York City’s Gender-Motivated Violence Act, which opened a two-year window to file lawsuits outside the statute of limitations. The deadline was the end of February, and nearly all the recent cases against the Alexanders were filed in the final days of the window.
The goal of the law was to provide a second chance for victims to pursue cases if they weren’t ready in the immediate aftermath of sexual assaults or other gender-motivated crimes. In an unrelated case filed under the city law, state Justice Leslie Stroth ruled that a plaintiff suing the Diocese of New York for alleged abuse as a child should be allowed to use a pseudonym. She said revealing the person’s identity publicly “would directly contradict the express legislative purpose” of the law.
Kull said judges almost always grant her clients’ requests to shield their identities from the public in sexual abuse cases, because of how traumatic the allegations are. Mariann Meier Wang, who often represents clients in sexual assault cases, said for a long time courts did not consider allowing pseudonyms and that it’s only become common recently. But she said even that shift has slowed. Attorneys have attributed some judges’ current reluctance to shield accusers’ names to a backlash from the Me Too era.
Judges have to consider several factors when deciding whether to grant anonymity to a plaintiff in a civil case, including whether the allegations are “highly sensitive and personal” and whether the plaintiff faces a risk of physical retaliation or mental harm if their name is available for anyone to see.
Alex Reinert, a professor at Cardozo Law School, said judges have to balance competing interests when deciding if someone bringing a lawsuit should be allowed to use a pseudonym: the plaintiff’s privacy, the defendant’s desire to clear their name and the public right to an open court system.
“The issues that are presented here are quite serious,” he said. “So is the interest of the public in knowing what’s going on in the courts. But also the interest of the public in making sure that people who have been sexually assaulted don’t fear bringing those claims simply because they worry that they’ll be subjected to retribution or retaliation in the public sphere.”
Legal experts said the anonymity ruling in her case doesn’t require judges presiding over other lawsuits against the Alexanders to prohibit plaintiffs from using pseudonyms. But they said the brothers could use the decision to support arguments in favor of making their accusers’ identities public.
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Samantha Max
Samantha reports on whether New Yorkers feel safe and whether the institutions that are supposed to protect them are working. Before coming to WNYC/Gothamist, she spent three years covering the criminal justice system in Tennessee for Nashville Public Radio. Her reporting on Nashville's police department received multiple awards, including the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize. Samantha was also part of the inaugural class of Report for America, a service journalism program that sends up-and-coming reporters to local newsrooms across the country. She is a Northwestern University grad, a Baltimore native and fluent in Spanish. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal: samanthamaxwnyc.93.
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