Cornell gang rape probe: Jane Doe's attorney says DA misled victim on investigation

Jane Doe's attorney says she was kept in the dark after the DA quietly closed the Cornell frat gang rape probe. NY's AG has since taken over the case.

Cornell gang rape investigation quietly shelved — victim's attorney says DA never told her

The attorney for the Jane Doe at the center of the "Cornell 7" alleged gang rape says his client was "misled" about the status of the criminal probe into her claims, NY Post Metro reports.

Thomas Giuffra, who represents the female student, said Jane Doe was allowed to believe the investigation was ongoing after she reported the alleged October 2024 assault to Cornell campus police several weeks after the incident. In reality, Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten had already decided against pressing charges — just days after officers first spoke with her.

"I think she was misled. She was told it was still — they weren't going to prosecute, but they were still investigating," Giuffra told the Associated Press. "I was involved with this case early on. I thought they were still investigating. It was news to me that they weren't doing anything."

Van Houten acknowledged asking Cornell police to inform Doe of his decision, but confirmed he never spoke directly with her or her attorney. Giuffra said he had assumed investigators were still working to interview witnesses and build a case. "But nothing was being done, and we didn't know that," he said.

Van Houten stated last week that his office declined to pursue charges after reviewing a six-page summary of Doe's account written by a police officer. Based on that document, he concluded no crime had been committed and that Doe's sexual participation and drug use that night were "voluntary, conscious and consensual." That account stands in sharp contrast to what Doe says she told both campus police and Cornell investigators, and to the allegations she laid out in a lawsuit filed last month against seven Chi Phi fraternity members and the university.

It was also reported last week that a Cornell police investigator had attempted to get Van Houten's office to consider additional evidence in the weeks following the reported assault — but was turned away. Giuffra said that disclosure changed his read of the situation. "At first I thought these police were incompetent. It sounds like they were doing the right thing. And they just got shot down," he said.

Governor Kathy Hochul removed the case from Tompkins County on Friday, transferring it to New York Attorney General Letitia James for a fresh investigation. Giuffra welcomed the move, saying he "didn't think [Van Houten] was up to the task" and had reservations about his approach to the reopened probe. Van Houten had reportedly planned to take the matter to a grand jury and have Jane Doe testify within two weeks.

James's office has indicated the investigation could take several months.

Van Houten's office and Cornell Campus Police did not respond to requests for comment. None of the seven fraternity members named in Jane Doe's civil lawsuit have been formally charged with any crime.

Source: NY Post Metro