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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO 

EASTERN DIVISION 

STACIE RAY, et al. 

Plaintiffs, 

v. 

STEPHANIE MCCLOUD, Director, Ohio 

Department Health, et al., 

Defendants. 

Case No.: 2:18-cv-00272-MHW-CMV 

Judge Michael Watson 

Magistrate Judge Chelsey Vascura 

MOTION FOR DESIGNATION AND REMOVAL FROM ECF OF 

HIGHLY SENSITIVE DOCUMENTS 

Pursuant to General Order 2021-01, which was issued in response to recent disclosures 

of wide-spread breaches of government computer systems that compromise the confidentiality 

of highly sensitive documents filed in in CM/ECF systems, Plaintiffs respectfully move that the 

Court designate five particular sealed filings in the above-captioned matter as Highly Sensitive 

Documents (HSD) and remove them from the Court’s electronic filing system. 

 As this Court and other Courts have recognized, “the excruciatingly private and intimate 

nature of transsexualism, for persons who wish to preserve privacy in the matter, is really beyond 

debate.” Order, ECF No. 47 at 23, citing Powell v. Schriver, 175 F.3d 108, 111 (2d Cir. 1999); see 

also K.L. v. State, No. 3AN-11-05431 CI, 2012 WL 2685183, at *6 (Alaska Super. Ct. Mar. 12, 

2012); Love v. Johnson, 146 F. Supp. 3d 848, 856 (E.D. Mich. 2015). “[T]ranssexualism is the 

unusual condition that is likely to provoke both an intense desire to preserve one’s medical 

confidentiality, as well as hostility and intolerance from others.” Powell, 175 F.3d at 111. 

Revealing explicit personal information about their bodies and their medical treatment related to 

their transgender status would invade the Plaintiffs’ privacy and put them at risk of harm. 

Case: 2:18-cv-00272-MHW-CMV Doc #: 84 Filed: 01/08/21 Page: 1 of 4 PAGEID #: 3020
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Especially given that the relief sought is narrow here and furthers the same interests as orders 

already made in this case, this is the rare instance where Plaintiffs’ “interests of privacy outweigh 

the public’s right to know.” In re Knoxville News-Sentinel Co., 723 F.2d 470, 474 (6th Cir. 1983). 

Three orders were entered in this case to safeguard the identity of Plaintiff Jane Doe and 

the medical privacy of all Plaintiffs: ECF No. 9, Order Granting Motion to Proceed 

Anonymously, ECF No. 34, Stipulated Protective Order, and ECF No. 59, Order Granting 

Motion to File Under Seal. ECF No. 59 ordered that four unredacted deposition transcripts 

(ECF Nos. 60, 61, 62, and 63) and a brief which referenced sensitive portions of those 

transcripts (ECF No. 70) were to be filed under seal. 

This Motion relates to these five documents, which were filed under seal, and contain 

highly sensitive information: 

ECF No. 60 Sealed Deposition Transcript of Basil Argento 

ECF No. 61 Sealed Deposition Transcript of Ashley Breda 

ECF No. 62 Sealed Deposition Transcript of Jane Doe 

ECF No. 63 Sealed Deposition Transcript of Stacie Ray 

ECF No. 70 Defendants’ Sealed Motion for Summary Judgment 

Redacted copies of each of these documents are available on the public docket. 

To continue to protect the confidential identifying information and sensitive medical or 

bodily information of Plaintiffs, these five filings should now be designated as HSDs and 

removed from the Court’s electronic filing system. 

A proposed order is attached hereto. 

Kara Ingelhart* (Illinois Bar No. 6321949) 

Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, Inc. 

105 W. Adams St., 26th Fl. 

Chicago, IL 60603 

Phone: (312) 663-4413 

Facsimile: (312) 663-4307 

Email: kingelhart@lambdalegal.org 

Peter C. Renn* (California Bar No. 247633) 

/s/ Elizabeth Bonham 

Elizabeth Bonham (0093733) 

Freda Levenson (0045916) 

Susan Becker (0010205) 

ACLU of Ohio 

4506 Chester Ave. 

Cleveland, OH 44103 

Phone: (614) 469-3200 

Facsimile: (614) 469-3361 

Email: flevenson@acluohio.org 

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Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, Inc. 

4221 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 280 

Los Angeles, CA 90010 

Phone: (213) 382-7600 

Facsimile: (213) 351-6050 

Email: prenn@lambdalegal.org 

Jennifer S. Roach (0074143) 

Thompson Hine, LLP. 

127 Public Square 

Suite 3900 

Cleveland, OH 44114 

Phone: (216) 566-5885 

Fax: (216) 566-5800 

Email: Jennifer.Roach@thompsonhine.com 

*Admitted Pro Hac Vice

Email: sbecker@acluohio.org 

Email: ebonham@acluohio.org 

David Carey (0088787) 

ACLU of Ohio Foundation 

1108 City Park Avenue 

Suite 203 

Columbus, OH 43206 

Phone: (614) 586-1969 

Fax: (614) 586-1974 

Email: dcarey@acluohio.org 

John Knight* (Illinois Bar No. 6201433) 

American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois 

180 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 2300 

Chicago, IL 60601 

Phone: (312) 201-9740 

Facsimile: (312) 288-5225 

Email: jknight@aclu-il.org 

Malita Picasso* (New York Bar No. 5750013) 

American Civil Liberties Union Foundation 

125 Broad St. 

18th Floor 

New York, NY 10004 

Phone: (212) 549-2561 

Facsimile: (212) 549-2650 

Email: mpicasso@aclu.org 

Case: 2:18-cv-00272-MHW-CMV Doc #: 84 Filed: 01/08/21 Page: 3 of 4 PAGEID #: 3022
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE 

I hereby certify that on this 8th day of January, 2021, I filed the foregoing electronically 

through the Court’s CM/ECF system. Parties may access this filing through the Court’s system. 

/s/ Elizabeth Bonham 

Elizabeth Bonham (0093733)

Attorney for Plaintiffs

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