New York Governor Kathy Hochul has appointed the state's attorney general as a special prosecutor to investigate the alleged gang rape of a woman at Cornell University. The allegations involve claims that the woman was drugged and raped by several men at a fraternity house. This case, which dates back to 2024, was reopened following a civil lawsuit filed by the woman last month that brought the allegations into public attention.
"New information has raised serious questions about how this case was handled, and I've lost faith in the Tompkins County DA's ability to fairly oversee it," Hochul stated. This decision removes Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten from the case.
Van Houten has defended his office's earlier decision not to file charges, stating that there was insufficient evidence to meet the legal threshold. He reopened the case after the civil lawsuit and noted that much of the recent information about the case had not been communicated to his office.
"The young woman at the center of this case deserves to know that every fact will be examined and justice pursued," Hochul added in her statement. The attorney general will prosecute any offenses identified during the investigation and present evidence to a grand jury, according to the governor.
The state's chief legal officer, Letitia James, stated on X that she is prepared to lead a process guided by the facts and the law. "The Governor has entrusted my office with this investigation, and we do not take that responsibility lightly," James remarked.
Hochul and James are scheduled to provide an update on the investigation on Friday morning local time. The woman, referred to as Jane Doe in court documents, filed a civil lawsuit against Cornell University in September, alleging that she was drugged and raped by seven men at the fraternity house in 2024. She contends that Cornell failed to protect her or adequately punish the individuals involved, who have been referred to as the Cornell Seven.
Initially, the case was referred to Van Houten in 2024, who stated that his office did not bring charges at that time because he had only received a statement from Doe suggesting the incident was consensual and that she had not been drugged. This week, his office announced the reopening of the case, occurring less than two weeks after Doe filed her civil lawsuit. Cornell University has indicated that it provided evidence to the district attorney's office from its own investigation, including a Snapchat group chat in which fraternity members discussed a "free" sexual encounter with Doe on the night of the alleged assault. Doe's attorney, Thomas Giuffra, has accused the district attorney of inconsistencies in his statements amid media coverage of the case.