Hochul Appoints Letitia James in 2024 Cornell Rape Case as Faith in D.A. Collapses
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Oct 2
Hochul Appoints Letitia James in 2024 Cornell Rape Case as Faith in D.A. Collapses
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Oct 2
Summary
Letitia James will oversee the Cornell rape investigation in Tompkins County after Gov. Kathy Hochul said new information undermined confidence in the local district attorney’s handling of the case.
October 2024 allegations from a then-20-year-old Cornell sophomore claim she was given alcohol and drugs and raped by multiple men at the Chi Phi fraternity house; no criminal charges were filed after she reported it weeks later.
Matthew Van Houten had reopened the case this week but defended the original decision, saying Jane Doe’s 2024 statement did not allege she was drugged against her will or gang raped.
More than 1,000 pages from Cornell’s internal inquiry and a transcript showing the woman told police she was “100 percent” sure she was raped fueled backlash over omissions in a six-page report reviewed by prosecutors.