US woman sues Cornell Uni & 7 students over alleged rape, chat screenshots asked if 'shop was still open' - Mothership

Prosecutors in the U.S. state of New York have commenced an investigation into a case of alleged rape of a Cornell University student by seven other fellow university students.

The Tompkins County District Attorney's office told ABC News that it may now bring criminal charges related to the case after a civil lawsuit was filed against the seven men by the complainant.

Previously, the same office stated that it had "conducted a thorough review of the police investigation," but "there was insufficient evidence to support criminal charges", as reported by CBS News.

The complainant, identified only as Jane Doe in the civil lawsuit, alleged that she was drugged and raped in a fraternity house of Cornell University in October 2024.

A fraternity is a social organisation in American universities (some known as colleges) for male undergraduate students.

While they provide social networks and are typically involved in charitable outreach activities, they have also come under scrutiny for "hazing", excessive drinking and disruptive behaviour.

Most fraternities have houses near campus where member students can stay instead of having to rent housing elsewhere.

At the time, Doe was 20 and attending Cornell as a student. She visited a friend at the house of the Chi Phi fraternity while intoxicated, and alleged she was pressured by two male fraternity members into snorting a substance they claimed was ketamine.

Doe then alleged she was sexually assaulted by the two members.

A man then sent a message to the fraternity Snapchat group, suggesting that the woman was available for sex. Doe alleges that more men arrived, and she was raped for hours.

Screenshots obtained by The New York Post showed one person asking if the "shop was still open".

After three weeks, Doe filed a complaint with the university. Cornell conducted an investigation, which led to two students being expelled, with others receiving lighter penalties such as suspensions, workshops and having to write essays.

Doe's attorney, Thomas Giuffra, said that no student was arrested following the investigation.

With no criminal charges brought, Doe's civil lawsuit accuses the university and other defendants of breach of contract, negligence and violations of state law.

Doe, who dropped out of the university afterwards, is seeking monetary damages, although an exact amount is not specified.

Two of the defendants, Scott Norris and Scott Kretzschmar, have denied the allegations.

"At bottom, Scott never sexually assaulted or even touched the plaintiff in any way. Period.

We look forward to confronting the plaintiff in a court of law for her selfishly false claims with both the evidence and her own words."

"I did not participate in any sexual activity or drug use. I was not found responsible by Cornell for any of the accusations involving sexual activity and drug use for which others received serious consequences.

I thoughtlessly engaged in Snapchat and briefly stopped in the room where misconduct happened but not when it happened."

The news of the civil lawsuit generated strong backlash on social media, with actress Florence Pugh commenting about the case on social media.

Cornell released a statement saying it takes sexual violence extremely seriously, and launched a task force following the incident, with changes implemented according to the task force's recommendations. The Xi chapter of Chi Phi fraternity is also barred from campus.

The District Attorney, Matthew Van Houten, also released a statement explaining and defending the office's earlier decision not to bring criminal charges, saying that the allegations in the civil lawsuit are "dramatically different" from Doe's statement to the police in 2024.

Speaking to ABC News, Van Houten said his team intends to present the case to the Tompkins County grand jury with Jane Doe's cooperation.

"We want to reexamine whether there's additional evidence that we were not aware of in November of 2024, that exists now that would change our assessment of the case and would result in the grand jury finding that there was criminal conduct."

Van Houten said he generally refrains from public comment on criminal investigations, but the community outrage stemming from "incomplete news and social media coverage" required an answer for why there was a lack of criminal charges previously.

"Jane Doe’s sworn statement in November of 2024 did not allege that 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.

My office obviously did not and could not have based our November 2024 decision on the allegations in a civil lawsuit that would not be filed until nearly two years later.

Furthermore, I have never been contacted by Jane Doe’s attorneys. Not to inform me the original statement was inaccurate and not to ask me to reconsider our decision.

Rather, I reached out to Jane Doe’s attorneys after the lawsuit was filed to understand the discrepancy between the original statement and the lawsuit’s allegations and the proper path forward in light of the lawsuit’s allegations."

However, Giuffra disputes Van Houten's description of the woman's initial statement to Cornell University police, and faulted the authorities for not following up with his client, ABC News further reported.

"In my experience, speaking with an abuse survivor requires delicacy, understanding and specialised 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. Doe was never contacted by anybody with those skills."

Van Houten has asked a senior prosecutor, a woman, to prepare a case for a grand jury, and that he recognises that the process of healing from trauma is personal and different for everyone.