The Tompkins County District Attorney's Office told ABC News on Monday, Sept. 28, that it plans to present the case to a grand jury. In a civil lawsuit, a former Cornell student claimed seven current and former members of the Chi Phi fraternity drugged, sexually assaulted, and gang-raped her in October 2024.
The woman, identified as Jane Doe in the lawsuit, filed the complaint on Monday, Sept. 14. She's suing the university, several Chi Phi fraternity organizations, the seven accused students, several sorority organizations, the former president of Cornell's Chi Phi chapter, a local bar, and several unnamed people.
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said his office hasn't decided whether to bring criminal charges.
"It's our intention to present the case to the Tompkins County grand jury with Jane Doe's cooperation," he told ABC News. "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."
Charges weren't filed following the initial investigation in 2024, with Van Houten saying the woman's statement to police was "dramatically different" from the suit's accusations.
"She never says that she was drugged without her knowledge," said Van Houten. "She admits to taking drugs and alcohol voluntarily and with knowledge. She does not allege that she was forced to engage in any acts. She does not say that she was physically helpless or unconscious or incapacitated at any point during the time at the fraternity house."
Thomas Giuffra, the woman's lawyer, disagreed with Van Houten's description of her initial statement to campus police and criticized investigators.
"In my experience, speaking with an abuse survivor requires delicacy, understanding, and specialized training," he said. "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 admitted his office didn't independently look into the accusations and relied on the Cornell police investigation. He also said the approach is similar to policies in many upstate New York counties.
Concerns have also been raised about a Snapchat group chat called "Chi Phi Actives," which purportedly invited other fraternity members to join the sexual assault, The Cornell Daily Sun reported. Giuffra said the messages were given to authorities in 2024 and called them a "critical piece of evidence."
Van Houten said the screenshot included in the suit was never given to his office.
"My client went to the Cornell University Police [Department] because a crime was committed," said Giuffra. "It was the obligation of the police to investigate the complaints. They were given the group chat inviting the members of the fraternity to rape my client. This was a critical piece of evidence supporting that a crime had occurred. Despite this there was no follow-up with Ms. Doe either by the Cornell Police or the Tompkins County District Attorney."
Lawyers for some of the accused men have denied the accusations.
Jeremy Saland, an attorney for defendant Scott Kretzschmar, said the incident described in the lawsuit "did not happen."
"At bottom, Scott never sexually assaulted or even touched the plaintiff in any way. Period," Saland said. "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."
Another defendant, Scott Norris, denied participating in sexual activity or drug use but acknowledged sending a message included in the lawsuit.
"I was not found responsible by Cornell for any of the accusations involving sexual activity and drug use for which others received serious consequences," Norris said through an attorney. "I thoughtlessly engaged in Snapchat and briefly stopped in the room where misconduct happened, but not when it happened."
In a statement on Monday, Sept. 21, Cornell said it takes sexual violence accusations "extremely seriously" and that university officials "investigated and adjudicated the allegations consistent with university policies." The school also said federal privacy law prevents it from publicly discussing discipline received by individual students.
Cornell issued a new statement supporting the district attorney's decision to allow the woman's account to be heard by a criminal grand jury.
"Cornell also conducted a thorough Title IX investigation, which is separate from a criminal proceeding, over the course of several months," the university said. "During that investigation, temporary suspensions and other restrictive measures were used. After investigation, and pursuant to federal law, the matter was sent to a hearing where a panel of trained faculty and staff heard evidence over multiple days. The complainant and respondents had the opportunity to testify and present evidence. At its conclusion, the hearing panel issued a range of sanctions, which included expulsions and suspensions from Cornell."
The university also disputed accusations from the woman's lawyers that the accused students were given "the opportunity to write essays as a sole consequence of their involvement."
"Any suggestion that the university did not impose consequential punishments for those involved is false," Cornell said. "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."
The case has sparked outrage, especially from advocates raising awareness about sexual assaults on college campuses.
Actress Florence Pugh, known for roles in "Little Women" and several Marvel Cinematic Universe movies, called on men to be "as horrified and as sickened as us" about the accusations.
"Colleges/schools/universities repeatedly fail women around the world," she wrote in an Instagram post. "You build men that get taught through time and time again that they can do extreme harm and that they won't be harmed in return."
Toby Morton, a former comedy writer for the shows "South Park" and "Mad TV," launched a website called TheCornell7.org to share the woman's story, along with "the lawsuit, public records, documented reporting, institutional responses, and additional verified information."
"The goal is not to be first," the website reads. "The goal is to build a record that can withstand scrutiny. This will take time. It will be careful. It will be documented. And there will be accountability."
Cornell's Chi Phi chapter was closed in 2024 and remains banned from the Ithaca, New York, campus.
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