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Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew van Houten has reopened the investigation into a woman's allegations of sexual assault by seven Cornell students and said evidence will be presented to a grand jury. The lawsuit has also prompted renewed scrutiny of Cornell's disciplinary response and campus sexual violence.
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew van Houten has reopened the investigation into allegations that seven Cornell University students sexually assaulted a woman at a fraternity house in 2024.
He said Monday that his office would present evidence to a grand jury as he faced questions about why the case had not previously resulted in criminal prosecutions. The woman, identified as Jane Doe in her lawsuit, says the alleged assault took place in October 2024 at the Chi Phi fraternity house on Cornell's campus. She was 20 and a member of a sorority at the time, according to the complaint.
The lawsuit alleges that the woman was pressured into snorting ketamine, smoking marijuana and drinking alcohol before becoming completely incapacitated. It says the seven fraternity members committed what it calls heinous criminal sexual acts against her. These remain allegations in a civil complaint. The woman is suing the seven men, Chi Phi, Cornell, an Ithaca bar and other defendants, seeking an unspecified amount in damages.
Her lawyer did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment on van Houten's decision to reopen the investigation. The woman went to campus police about three weeks after the alleged assault, the lawsuit says. Van Houten said she did not allege in her initial sworn statement to authorities that she had been gang-raped or drugged. The district attorney said the woman's lawyer had not contacted him about her statement or asked him to reconsider the decision not to prosecute.
Reopening Investigation Based On New Evidence
He said he recently reached out to the lawyer and had begun the review with a conversation with Jane Doe and her attorneys. Seeking justice sometimes requires us to reconsider or reopen cases when we are provided with additional evidence, van Houten said in a statement. He said the community had asked him to revisit whether criminal charges should be pursued against the seven fraternity members.
Van Houten said his office had received a flood of phone calls, voicemails and emails since the lawsuit was filed. Some people sought answers, while others made insults and threats, he said. He said public outrage over incomplete news and social media coverage required him to explain why the earlier investigation had produced no criminal charges. Cornell said it supported the decision to reopen the investigation.
The university said it conducted its own disciplinary investigation in 2024, during which a panel of trained faculty and staff heard evidence over multiple days. Both the woman and the accused students had an opportunity to testify and present evidence, the school said. The university said it imposed sanctions, including expelling some students and suspending others. Officials declined on Monday to disclose how many students were expelled or suspended, citing federal privacy laws.
University Sanctions And Chapter Closure Disputed
Cornell said the campus Chi Phi chapter was closed in 2024 and remains barred from campus. Any suggestion that the university did not impose consequential punishments for those involved is false, Cornell said. It called claims that consequences were minimal a false narrative, saying they could make survivors feel less safe and supported and perpetuate the underreporting of sexual assault. The complaint accuses Cornell of failing to prevent the alleged assaults and of not properly addressing sexual violence on campus.
It includes a photograph that the lawsuit says shows a group chat in which fraternity members discussed the night's events. The lawsuit says the fraternity and the seven members were placed on temporary suspension on the same day the woman went to campus police. It alleges that the students were given the opportunity to mitigate their conduct by submitting essays to Cornell.
The university responded that none of the individuals charged were offered essays as the sole consequence of their involvement, pointing to expulsions and suspensions. The national chapter of Chi Phi did not return phone or email messages on Monday. Social media commentary about the lawsuit, the investigation and Cornell's response has included criticism of the university and district attorney's office, as well as expressions of doubt about the allegations. Some people posted photographs of the seven fraternity members.
Ocasio-Cortez Condemns Protected Rape Culture
Over the weekend, New York Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez condemned what she described as a culture of rape protected at elite institutions. Speaking at a forum packed with young people near Cornell's campus, she said the alleged group chat showed the conduct was normal and acceptable to the men involved. She added that people must understand they cannot continue protecting those spaces. Cornell said a task force on campus sexual assault, formed in 2025, made recommendations this year.
The university said several recommendations had been implemented and others were in development. A task force report cited a 2025 school survey in which 35 per cent of undergraduate women and 8 per cent of undergraduate men said they had experienced sexual assault during their time at Cornell. Eeshaan Chaudhuri, a Cornell senior and student body president, said the university's initial investigation and the district attorney's decision not to do more should be examined again.
He also said the culture at the fraternity needed scrutiny. The issue poses a broader question beyond Cornell, he said, adding that such problems cannot be fixed overnight.
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theage:This story was compiled and edited by the HeadTopics newsroom and HT AI from the reports above.
Chi Phi Fraternity Sexual Assault Investigation Tompkins County Prosecutor Campus Sexual Violence
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