Notre Dame rector files defamation suit against online posters of anonymous abuse allegations

A former campus residence rector at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana has filed suit against several individuals who earlier this year had anonymously accused her online of sexual abuse.

An Oct. 6 hearing has been scheduled in Indiana's St. Joseph County Superior Court, with plaintiff Elizabeth Greenop requesting subpoenas to discover the identities of 10 defendants referenced in the suit as "Jane" and "John Doe(s)," the legal convention for persons whose names are unknown or withheld for privacy.

The lawsuit asserts the graphic accusations, posted in June and July to shareyourstory.notredame – an Instagram account not affiliated with the university – constitute both defamation and a false-light invasion of privacy, a charge similar to defamation.

The suit also seeks as-yet unspecified compensatory and punitive damages, legal fees and other relief as well as a jury trial.

Following professional news standards, OSV News did not disclose Greenop's name in its previous coverage of the matter due to the uncorroborated nature of the anonymous, social media-based allegations. As a result of the legal filing, Greenop's name and association with the matter has become public record, with the case and its documents discoverable online.

An investigation has not yet determined the credibility of the allegations, nor has Greenop been charged with a crime.

The lawsuit denies all of the allegations.

The university – which had placed the rector on leave June 29 – told OSV News in a Sept. 25 email that it had "no comment" on the lawsuit and "no comment on the investigation at this time."

Greenop's attorney, Michael P. Smyth, declined to provide direct comment from his client, stating in a Sept. 28 email to OSV News that she "has set forth her position in the complaint."

Noting "the social media posts were anonymous and uncorroborated," Smyth added, "We are confident that litigation will reveal that they were also false."

The administrator of the shareyourstory.notredame Instagram account – who had agreed in July to speak with OSV News on condition of anonymity, and whose identity OSV News has verified – also declined to comment.

None of the Instagram posts specifically named Greenop. However, the lawsuit – which lists the account administrator as the "Operator Doe Defendant(s)" – holds that the posts provided sufficient information to correlate them with her.

In particular, the posts referenced her position as rector "of a specifically identifiable residence hall" and "expressly" cross-referenced each other, said the lawsuit.

In addition, said the suit, Greenop's name was included in at least two articles published regarding the claims – a July 1 article by The Observer, one of the independent student-run newspapers at Notre Dame; and a July 10 story by the National Catholic Register. Neither publication was named as a defendant in the filing.

The account administrator and the post authors were also alleged to have acted "with actual malice," the lawsuit alleged.

The Instagram account describes itself as "sharing the stories of sexual assault, abuse, and stalking victims at the University of Notre Dame," adding, "For survivors. By survivors."

Anonymous submissions to the account are made through a Google Forms link, with all submissions posted to the Instagram account, provided they are relevant and do not violate the platform's terms of service.

The account has continued to publish anonymous accounts of other alleged sexual assault incidents, none of which appear to implicate Greenop.