Prosecutors in New York have reopened a criminal investigation into allegations that a woman was sexually assaulted by multiple men at a Cornell University fraternity house in October 2024.
The case was revived after the woman, identified as “Jane Doe” in court documents, filed a civil lawsuit on Sept. 16 alleging that seven men affiliated with the Chi Phi fraternity attacked her at the house on Oct. 19, 2024.
She alleges that alcohol and ketamine were used during the incident and that she was intoxicated and unable to consent to sexual activity.
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said the case would now be presented to a grand jury, which will determine whether there is sufficient evidence to bring criminal charges.
“We will determine the appropriate charges and proceed through the grand jury in the most objective and impartial manner possible,” Van Houten said.
Prosecutor points to differences in earlier testimony
Van Houten said his office had previously reviewed the case after Doe contacted Cornell University Police on Nov. 8, 2024, but concluded at the time that the available evidence did not meet the legal threshold required to file charges.
The prosecutor said Doe’s sworn statement from November differed from the allegations contained in her recent civil lawsuit.
According to Van Houten, the earlier statement did not allege that Doe had been drugged against her will or gang-raped. He said her initial account instead described drug use and sexual activity as voluntary and consensual.
Van Houten also said Doe’s lawyers had not previously contacted his office to argue that the original statement was inaccurate or to ask prosecutors to reconsider their decision.
However, he acknowledged that victims of sexual assault may need significant time, including therapy and recovery, to process what happened to them.
Doe’s attorney, Thomas Giuffra, disputed the characterization of his client’s initial account. He said she was traumatized in the aftermath of the incident and struggled to process what had happened.
Giuffra also criticized the original investigation, saying his client had spoken only to the police officer who initially received her complaint and arguing that a serious criminal investigation should involve repeated interviews, evidence collection and a more comprehensive case-building process.
Cornell says disciplinary action was taken
Doe’s lawsuit also accuses Cornell of failing to protect her and of imposing insufficient penalties on students allegedly involved in the incident.
The university rejected that claim, saying the allegations were investigated by a panel of trained faculty and staff and that disciplinary measures included expulsions and suspensions.
Cornell also denied an allegation that those accused were given the option of writing an essay as their sole punishment.
The university had announced an investigation in November 2024 into what it described as serious allegations involving drug use and sexual violence at the Chi Phi house. Cornell police opened an investigation, while the fraternity’s local chapter and some students were suspended.
The university also launched a civil rights investigation under Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sex-based discrimination at federally funded educational institutions. Chi Phi’s suspension from operating on the Cornell campus remains in place.
An attorney for one of the men named in the lawsuit, Jeremy Saland, also rejected the allegations against his client. Saland acknowledged that his client had responded to a Snapchat message with what he described as an immature comment, but said he had no sexual contact with Doe, did not touch her and did not use ketamine.
Case sparks renewed debate on campus
The reopening of the criminal investigation has triggered renewed debate over how Cornell handles allegations of sexual assault and how much information the university provides about such cases.
Sophia Dasser, editor-in-chief of the student newspaper The Cornell Daily Sun, said students were angry and surprised by the developments, as well as by what she described as the limited information made available about the case over the past two years.
Dasser said students were particularly concerned about the lack of transparency surrounding Cornell’s Title IX process. She noted that some universities publish anonymized information about sexual assault cases, including outcomes and disciplinary measures, while Cornell has not done so to the same extent.
The mayor of Ithaca, where Cornell is located, has also called for a pause on permits for student and private events until the university reviews its protocols for preventing and investigating sexual violence.
Cornell said it established a working group on sexual assault in 2025 and has implemented some of its recommendations, while others remain under development.
According to a 2025 university study, 35% of female undergraduate students and 8% of male undergraduate students reported experiencing sexual assault during their time at Cornell. The report said that despite years of efforts to address sexual violence, reported levels remained high.
The criminal case will now return to the grand jury as prosecutors reassess the allegations and evidence surrounding the 2024 incident.
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