Lincoln, Neb. ? The woman at the center of a sexual assault case has sued the judge who dismissed the case because he barred the word “rape” and other words from being used during the trial.

Tory Bowen, 24, said in the complaint filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Lincoln that Lancaster County District Judge Jeffre Cheuvront violated her First Amendment right to free speech by barring words including “rape,” “victim” and “assailant” from the trial of Pamir Safi.

Safi, 34, was charged with first-degree sexual assault stemming from an encounter between Bowen and Safi at his apartment the morning of Oct. 31, 2004. Safi said he and Bowen, who met each other for the first time at a bar the night before, had consensual sex.

Bowen, a former University of Nebraska-Lincoln student who now lives in Washington, D.C., says she was too intoxicated to give consent.

Cheuvront declared a mistrial last year after the jury deadlocked 7-5. He declared a second mistrial in July during jury selection, this time citing intense news coverage and public protests on behalf of Bowen.

In enacting the language restrictions, Cheuvront said he was concerned that Safi’s constitutional right to a fair trial might be jeopardized if witnesses were permitted to use the banned words in their testimony.

The language restrictions, which also barred the use of the words “sexual assault,” were in effect for Safi’s first trial, in November.