Judge: Cop Doesn't Have to Out Officers

A county judge decided that a police sergeant in Roseville, Calif., will not have to out other gay and lesbian officers in a discrimination lawsuit three officers filed against the city last year.

The city of Roseville asked that Sgt. Darin DeFreece, one of the plaintiffs, release names to help it coordinate its defense. Judge Margaret Wells said disclosing such information would be in violation of those officers' right to privacy under the Fourteenth Amendment ro the U.S. Constitution, according to the Roseville Press Tribune.

"The court is hard-pressed to imagine any private information more sensitive than one's sexual orientation." Wells wrote in her ruling Tuesday. "On the other hand, this is not a mere fishing expedition by defendants."

A trial in the case could begin in late April.