The Tompkins County District Attorney's Office in New York announced it is reopening the criminal investigation into allegations of gang rape and drugging of a female student at a Cornell University male fraternity house in 2024, following a civil lawsuit filed against seven fraternity members and the university, sparking public outcry and demands for criminal prosecution.
Matthew Van Houten, the Tompkins County District Attorney in New York, revealed that the office will reopen the investigation into the gang rape allegations that occurred at the Chi Phi fraternity house at Cornell University and will present evidence to a grand jury to determine whether to file criminal charges against the seven accused individuals.
This decision follows a civil lawsuit filed on 16 Sep by the female student, who was 20 years old at the time of the incident, alleging that seven Chi Phi fraternity members sexually assaulted her inside the fraternity house in October 2024 after pressuring her to consume ketamine, smoke marijuana, and drink alcohol to the point she was incapable of giving consent.
The lawsuit states that fraternity members used a Snapchat group chat to invite others to join the incident and discussed the event within the chat group, attaching some screenshots as evidence.
Van Houten explained that the reason criminal charges were not pursued initially was because the details in the recent civil lawsuit differed from the victim's original 2024 statement to campus police, which described the drug use and sexual activity as consensual and voluntary.
However, the victim's attorney contested that the victim's statements significantly differ from the civil allegations and criticized the prosecutor's office for insufficiently thorough initial investigation.
Van Houten stated that the decision to reconsider the case came after new evidence emerged and public demand intensified; he has begun renewed proceedings by consulting with the victim and her lawyers, affirming that seeking justice may require reopening or reviewing cases when new information arises.
According to the lawsuit, the woman reported the incident to campus police about three weeks afterward, while Chi Phi and its seven members were temporarily suspended by the university on the same day.
The lawsuit also accuses Cornell University of failing to adequately prevent sexual assault and address sexual violence on campus. The plaintiff is suing the seven fraternity members, Chi Phi fraternity, Cornell University, a bar in Ithaca, and other defendants seeking unspecified damages.
Cornell University issued a statement supporting the prosecutor's decision to reopen the investigation, confirming the university conducted an internal inquiry into the 2024 allegations and imposed disciplinary actions at various levels, including expulsion and suspension of some students.
The university also stated that the Chi Phi chapter involved in the case was closed and banned from campus activities since 2024 and remains prohibited to this day.
Cornell denied allegations that it lightly punished those involved, stating accused students were not merely assigned to write essays as restitution but faced expulsion and suspension. However, the university did not disclose the number of students expelled or suspended, citing student privacy laws.
The university explained that disciplinary investigations were conducted by a committee composed of trained faculty and staff, with several days of evidence hearings and opportunities for both complainants and accused to present information and evidence.
The national Chi Phi fraternity, founded over 200 years ago, has not commented on the allegations.
The lawsuit filing, reopening of the investigation, and university's stance have sparked extensive social media debate, with some demanding accountability from the university and prosecutor's office, others questioning the civil allegations, and some sharing images of the seven fraternity members online.
U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat representing a New York district, said that elite educational institutions should not allow cultures enabling sexual assault to persist unaddressed.
Eshan Chaudhury, a senior student and president of Cornell's student government, called for a review of the university's internal investigation and why the prosecutor did not act more decisively initially, emphasizing the need to examine the culture within the involved fraternity.
Cornell stated that its Sexual Misconduct Task Force, established in 2025, proposed multiple reforms earlier this year, with some measures already implemented and others in development.
The task force report noted that a 2025 university survey found 35% of female undergraduates and 8% of male undergraduates reported experiencing sexual assault during their studies at Cornell.
Van Houten said that following the civil lawsuit filed on 16 Sep, the prosecutor's office received numerous phone calls, voicemail messages, and emails from the public seeking answers about case handling, alongside some messages containing insults and threats toward staff.
The prosecutor noted that public dissatisfaction fueled by incomplete information and social media coverage necessitated explaining why the initial investigation did not result in criminal charges and led to the decision to reopen the case for further evidence review.