The lawsuit alleges that Doe was sexually assaulted, raped, and pressured to consume ketamine after a night of heavy drinking at the Chi Phi fraternity house on the night of October 19, 2024. The complaint names seven fraternity brothers, as well as the university, the national fraternity organization, and a local bar. In response to the lawsuit, District Attorney Matthew Van Houten announced a reconsideration of the case, which his office previously determined lacked sufficient evidence for criminal charges.
Documents obtained by media outlets reveal that Doe provided a sworn statement to Cornell University police on November 14, 2024, 26 days after the alleged incident. In the statement, she described initially agreeing to a sexual encounter with two men but stated she felt increasingly incapacitated as the night progressed. She reported gaps in her memory and described feeling “extremely uncomfortable” and “instantly horrified” when multiple other men entered the room. Doe stated she was unable to leave because her phone was out of reach and she had no means of payment to call a ride.
Van Houten defended his office’s initial decision not to prosecute in a lengthy statement released Monday. He asserted that Doe’s sworn statement 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,” Van Houten said. He noted that the statement did not meet the legal threshold of proof beyond a reasonable doubt for a lack of consent under New York State Penal Law, specifically noting that Doe did not allege she was unconscious or incapable of controlling her conduct.
Doe’s attorney, Thomas P. Giuffra, disputed the characterization of the events as consensual. “If my client consented, why did you make a complaint to the police and say I’ve been assaulted?” Giuffra said. He also noted that his client was never contacted by the DA’s office prior to the reconsideration, calling the renewed look “a step in the right direction, albeit a late one.” The attorney for one of the accused students, Scott Kretzschmar, called the allegations “dishonest” and “morally repugnant,” stating his client was involved in no sexual activity and did not ingest ketamine.
Cornell University stated that it conducted a “thorough, monthslong Title IX investigation,” which is a civil process distinct from criminal law. The university said it imposed a range of sanctions, including expulsions and suspensions, but did not disclose specific outcomes due to federal privacy laws. The Chi Phi chapter was suspended and remains barred from campus. New York Governor Kathy Hochul confirmed that the university has agreed to bring in outside counsel to conduct an independent investigation into its handling of the case.
The DA’s office is currently reassessing the evidence, including the sworn statement and other investigatory materials shared by Cornell police. No criminal charges have been filed against the seven named individuals to date.
