The 2024 gang rape allegation at Cornell and the reckoning over its handling

State officials stepped in after the lawsuit. Hochul called for an outside review, saying the case raised "serious questions about Cornell campus culture,"^[1] and Van Houten said he would pursue any additional evidence.^[3] Hochul later called the school's handling "a failure" but stopped short of calling for the resignations of Cornell's president or the prosecutor, as James took over the case.^[12] President Donald Trump said the accused "won't get a fair shake" with James in the role.^[4]

Cornell defended its handling, called the accuser "irresponsible" over claims in an essay and said it supported the district attorney's decision to put the case before a grand jury.^[13] The university said it would hire outside lawyers to investigate^[1] but declined to release a six-page report from its earlier investigation.^[14] Its president, Michael Kotlikoff, called the allegation "deeply disturbing," said the university "must do better" and pledged greater transparency.^[5] A student who said she gave campus police useful information in 2024 said she felt "betrayed" by the handling of the case.^[5]

The case drew wide attention. The accuser's lawyer said people had threatened to silence or harm her if she did not withdraw her lawsuit.^[1] A former "South Park" writer launched a website targeting the seven men and Cornell administrators,^[2] the actress Florence Pugh accused Instagram of limiting her post about it,^[15] and one of the accused lost his job at a Wells Fargo branch, according to TMZ.^[16] Others urged caution: Sunny Hostin of "The View" defended the 2024 decision not to charge, citing New York law on intoxication and consent,^[17] and one columnist argued that the lawsuit was being accepted too credulously.^[1] The case also renewed debate over what experts call a loophole in New York's sexual assault law, and a proposed state law would change it.^[1]

Cornell's response widened in October. It brought in Sally Yates, a former Justice Department official, to review its handling of sexual assault claims,^[18] and days later it suspended parties and other social events at fraternity houses for the rest of the academic year and gave the New York State Police a role in investigating sex crimes on campus.^[8] Kotlikoff acknowledged that he had failed to follow up after learning of the former student's report,^[6] and he faced angry faculty members at a meeting to debate a no-confidence vote in his administration.^[7]

The legal fight continued. Lawyers for one of the accused students asked the judge for a gag order,^[19] and one of the accused agreed with Trump that the seven would not get a fair hearing with James as prosecutor.^[20] The New York Post published a three-letter text sent from the accuser's phone to her roommate during the night she described.^[21] The former student later said Kotlikoff's response had made her feel unsupported and disbelieved, which Cornell called an incorrect description of his reaction,^[22] and the former president of the fraternity was dropped from her lawsuit.^[23]

Pressure on the university continued into the fall. Faculty began voting on a no-confidence measure,^[24] Gov. Kathy Hochul said state police would take over future sexual assault investigations at Cornell,^[25] and the university faced questions after one of the seven disciplined students returned to campus this fall following a three-semester suspension.^[26] In court, a judge allowed the accuser to stay anonymous,^[27] one fraternity member asked to be dropped from the lawsuit,^[28] and one of the accused men asked a state judge to remove James from the investigation over her social media posts.^[29] James's choice of Kelly to lead it came in early November.^[9]

On November 6, Cornell's Faculty Senate approved a resolution of no confidence in the central administration and in Kotlikoff over the school's handling of sexual assault, and university leaders rejected it.^[11][30] Four other men named in the lawsuit joined the effort to remove James from the investigation,^[31] and documents showed that days before the lawsuit was filed, the university had been negotiating for the fraternity's return to campus.^[32]