New York prosecutors reopen Cornell frat rape investigation

New York state prosecutors have reopened an investigation into the alleged rape of a woman at Cornell University.

The woman, identified as Jane Doe in court filings, filed a 101‑page civil lawsuit on 16 September alleging she was drugged with ketamine and raped by seven men from the Chi Phi fraternity on the night of 19 October 2024.

Doe, a 20‑year‑old Cornell undergraduate, says she left her sorority sisters after drinking and “stumbled alone” to the fraternity house in Ithaca to see a male friend. She reported the incident to Cornell University Police on 8 November 2024.

The lawsuit, which names the university, the fraternity, sorority and the seven men (dubbed the “Cornell Seven”), alleges sexual assault, battery, negligence, breach of contract and violations of New York’s Human Rights Law. It includes an image of a fraternity group chat discussing a “free” sexual encounter with Doe.

Cornell said it supported presenting the case to a grand jury and rejected claims that it failed to punish those involved, though two of the men have been expelled and the Chi Phi chapter was suspended. The university also opened internal Title IX and civil‑rights inquiries.

Evidence supplied to prosecutors includes a Snapchat group screenshot titled “Chi Phi Actives” showing members using coarse language to discuss the alleged assault shortly before 02:00 local time on 20 October 2024.

Source: BBC News. Photo: Clément Proust / Pexels.