Cornell Gang Rape Allegation Revived as Grand Jury Weighs Charges

New York prosecutors have revived a criminal investigation into allegations that a female student at Cornell University was drugged and sexually assaulted by multiple fraternity members, after the woman filed a civil lawsuit accusing the Ivy League school and local law enforcement of failing to hold her alleged attackers accountable.

The complainant, identified in court filings only as Jane Doe, claims she was raped by seven men at the Chi Phi fraternity house in Ithaca, New York, over roughly seven hours during the early morning of October 19, 2024. According to a 101-page lawsuit filed on September 16, she had been drinking at an off-campus bar before visiting a friend at the fraternity house and was already intoxicated when she arrived.

The lawsuit states that two fraternity members proposed that she have sex with both of them and then pressured her into taking ketamine and smoking marijuana. Doe, who was 20 at the time, alleges she was subsequently assaulted by seven men before losing consciousness at about 5:45 a.m.She reported the incident to Cornell University's police department on November 8, 2024, but no criminal charges followed at the time. Her attorney, Thomas Giuffra, told CBS News that his client went to police because she believed she was the "victim of a crime," and he criticized investigators for failing to follow up.

"Other than her initial contact with Cornell Police, she was not contacted by investigators from the Tompkins County District Attorney's Office or any investigators trained in interviewing rape survivors," Giuffra said. He added that Cornell expelled two fraternity members following an internal review, while five others received lesser sanctions, including suspensions, workshops and essay assignments. "Not one of these guys was arrested. Not one. That I can tell you for a fact," he told CBS New York, noting that Doe withdrew from the university after the alleged assault.

The lawsuit names Matthew Ingalls, Johnathan Newell, Winston Lee, Gillio Lopes, Diego Sarabia, Scott Norris and Scott Kretzschmar as the men accused. It also lists Cornell, the Chi Phi fraternity, Doe's sorority Delta Delta Delta, the off-campus bar and the seven men as defendants, accusing them of breach of contract, negligence and violations of state law. Doe is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, though the filing does not specify a dollar amount.

The legal action has drawn widespread anger on social media directed at both the university and the Tompkins County District Attorney's Office over their handling of the allegations. In response to mounting public pressure, District Attorney Matthew Van Houten announced on Monday that he would present the case to a grand jury, allowing community members to decide whether charges are warranted.

Van Houten explained that when the complaint was first filed in November 2024, his office concluded that the evidence from the initial statement did not meet the legal threshold required to bring charges. "Once we determine the appropriate charges, the case will be prosecuted in the most objective and impartial means available – by testimony to the Tompkins County grand jury," he said.

The district attorney's statement also revealed a significant discrepancy between Doe's initial account to police and the allegations later detailed in her civil lawsuit. According to Van Houten, Doe's November 2024 statement did not claim she was drugged against her will or gang-raped. "On the contrary, Jane Doe's statement described her participation in drug use and sexual conduct as voluntary, conscious and consensual," he said, adding that his office could not have based its 2024 decision on claims that would not surface until the civil suit was filed nearly two years later.

The lawsuit includes screenshots of a Snapchat group chat among fraternity members in which one participant crudely alerted others that they could have sex with the woman for "free." One message shown in the filing reads, "I f\*\*\*\*\*\* love Chi Phi." Kretzschmar, who was a fraternity member at the time, allegedly sent two responses in the group but has denied any involvement in the assault.

His attorney, Jeremy Saland, acknowledged to CBS News that the messages were inappropriate but argued they did not constitute evidence of sexual assault. "This is a situation where there was an ugly Snapchat – ugly, period. … But that doesn't make my client a rapist, and it certainly doesn't make anyone a sex offender," Saland said. He added that Kretzschmar briefly entered the room where Doe was but did not touch her "in any way, shape or form" and left quickly. Saland also said his client underwent a hair follicle test that found no ketamine in his system, and that no one had contacted him about the reopened investigation. "We are available to present exonerating evidence. I just hope the right thing is eventually done, this case is closed and my client can live his life and not be subject to this selfish, repugnant, vile claim by this woman about him," he said.

Andrew Miltenberg, an attorney representing Lopes, likewise told CBS New York that his client "unequivocally denies the allegations against him." The remaining defendants have not publicly commented on the specifics of the case.

Cornell University issued a statement on Monday supporting the district attorney's decision to have Doe's account heard by a grand jury. The university said it had conducted its own months-long investigation and referred the matter to a hearing where a panel of trained faculty and staff reviewed evidence from both Doe and the accused. "At its conclusion, the hearing panel issued a range of sanctions, which included expulsions and suspensions from Cornell. None of the individuals charged were offered the opportunity to write essays as a sole consequence of their involvement," the statement read. Cornell also noted that Chi Phi fraternity was closed in 2024 and remains barred from campus.

The university pushed back strongly against criticism that its punishments were insufficient. "Any suggestion that the university did not impose consequential punishments for those involved is false. A continuation of the false narrative that there were minimal consequences in this case is irresponsible, will make survivors feel less safe and supported, and will perpetuate the underreporting of sexual assault," it said.

The case now rests with the Tompkins County grand jury, which will weigh whether the evidence supports criminal charges against any of the seven men. The outcome could have significant implications not only for the individuals involved but also for how universities and local prosecutors handle sexual assault allegations involving students – a issue that has long sparked debate over whether campus disciplinary processes and the criminal justice system adequately serve survivors.