Prosecutors in central New York have announced they are relaunching their investigation into allegations of ‘gang rape’ at a Cornell University fraternity chapter during 2024, following a civil lawsuit filed in recent weeks that generated significant public concern regarding the matter.
Cornell’s Chi Phi chapter found itself banned from campus following the reported incident, even though the District Attorney’s office confirmed that no criminal charges were filed against any of the individuals allegedly involved. Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten stated in a public announcement that his office is evaluating the possibility of pursuing criminal charges stemming from the incident. Jane Doe’s lawyer, Thomas P. Giuffra, took issue with how Van Houten characterized the woman’s original account given to Cornell University Police Department officials and criticized the authorities for failing to reach back out to his client for any follow-up conversations. “In my experience, speaking with an abuse survivor requires delicacy, understanding and specialized training. An average University Police officer would not have these skills. It would be the role of a specially trained detective or district attorney. However, Ms. During an ABC News interview, Houten shared that he depended on the work done by Cornell Police and mentioned that his office didn’t carry out independent probe into the claims. He noted that this approach aligns with how many other counties in upstate New York typically handle such matters.
However, he noted that the claims presented in the civil filing are “dramatically different” from the account the woman provided to law enforcement officers two years ago. Doe was never contacted by anybody with those skills,” he said, as per ABC News.
