The four students and their parents who filed the latest lawsuit challenging Kamehameha Schools' Hawaiian preference admission policy must reveal their identities, a federal magistrate judge ruled yesterday.

However, Magistrate Judge Barry Kurren, in a written order filed in U.S. District Court, stayed enforcement of his order 10 days to give the students and their parents time to decide whether they will continue to pursue the lawsuit.

Parents of each of the students said in written declarations submitted to the court that if they are faced with the choice between revealing their children's identities to the public or pulling out of the lawsuit, they would almost certainly choose to pull out.

The lawsuit filed Aug. 6 identifies the students as Lisa Doe, Karl Doe, Jacob Doe and his sister Janet Doe. It identifies James and Joyce Doe as the parents of Jacob and Janet Doe, Kirk and Kate Doe, the parents of Karl Doe and Laura Doe, the mother of Lisa Doe.

In the previous lawsuit, both sides agreed to keep the name of plaintiff John Doe anonymous. That case ended in an out-of-court settlement after the U.S. District Court in Hawaii and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the policy but before the U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion.

However, in the current lawsuit, defendants Kamehameha Schools and the trustees of the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate oppose keeping the names of the plaintiffs anonymous.

They said they need the names of the students to check on their claims that they applied for admission, were found to be qualified, but were not accepted because they were not of Hawaiian ancestry.

In his order, Kurren said, “;Plaintiffs' use of fictitious names runs afoul of the public's common law right of access to judicial proceedings.”;

If the “;plaintiffs seek the protections and benefits of litigating their action, they must do so openly,”; he said.

Kamehameha Schools spokeswoman Ann Botticelli said, “;Judge Kurren deliberated thoroughly and carefully and we appreciate his decision.”;

David Rosen, the Hawaii lawyer for the Doe plaintiffs, said yesterday he was not able to comment on Kurren's order because he had not seen it.