New York prosecutors have reopened a criminal investigation into the alleged gang rape of a Cornell University student at a fraternity house in 2024, after the woman filed a civil lawsuit accusing seven men of assaulting her.
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said Monday the case will go before a grand jury. "Once we determine the appropriate charges, the case will be prosecuted in the most objective and impartial means possible," Van Houten said.
The woman, identified in court documents as Jane Doe, filed her lawsuit on Sept. 16. She alleges that on the night of Oct. 19, 2024, seven members of Cornell's Chi Phi fraternity chapter assaulted her at the fraternity house. The lawsuit states she was intoxicated and incapable of giving consent, and that the incident involved alcohol and the drug ketamine.
Jane Doe reported the incident to Cornell University Police on Nov. 8, 2024. It is not clear why the criminal case stalled before prosecutors announced the reopened inquiry this week.
The lawsuit includes what it describes as an image from a Snapchat group chat used by fraternity members. In it, a participant allegedly alerted others, in vulgar terms, to the possibility of a sexual encounter with Jane Doe.
Cornell said it supports sending the case to a grand jury but pushed back on claims that it failed to act. "Any suggestion that the university did not impose consequential punishments for those involved is false," the school said in a statement.
The case echoes a string of high-profile campus sexual assault cases that have drawn scrutiny to how universities and local law enforcement handle allegations involving fraternities. Grand jury proceedings allow prosecutors to present evidence and seek indictments without a defense present, a step that often signals a case is moving toward charges.
Van Houten's office has not said what charges are under consideration or when the grand jury will convene. Cornell has not disclosed what disciplinary action, if any, was taken against the students named in the lawsuit. The civil case against the fraternity and its members continues in court.
The seven men accused have not been criminally charged. No arrests have been announced.
