NY governor says Cornell rape accuser was ‘failed’ by people obligated to protect her
Oct 1, 2026, 9:51 PM | Updated: Oct 2, 2026, 9:40 am
NEW YORK (AP) — The woman who accused members of a Cornell University fraternity of gang rape was “failed” by people obligated to protect her, including campus police and the county prosecutor, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Friday.
Hochul said at a news conference that she decided to appoint Attorney General Letitia James as a special prosecutor to take over the case after learning “troubling details” about how authorities have handled the woman’s claims thus far, including that the district attorney closed the case without having anyone interview the accuser or anyone else involved in the alleged attack.
“In what world does the district attorney not even interview her, or anyone else involved, or even request the full transcript?” Hochul said. “This woman, this young woman, had already endured something that is utterly unspeakable. And then at every turn, she was failed by people and institutions with an obligation to protect her.”
She also assailed the Cornell University Police Department for not fully conveying the woman’s story to prosecutors.
“After this young woman came forward, she spoke to the police. She sat for hours and told them exactly what happened to her. And according to new reports, she could not have been clearer that she was 100% confident that she had been raped,” the Democratic governor said. “Yet, shockingly, those words never made it into the account that the Cornell police sent to prosecutors.”
Hochul said Thursday that she appointed James to oversee the case because she had lost faith in the local district attorney’s ability to handle it.
James didn’t say how long her investigation might take, but she said it would take some time and wouldn’t be rushed, as every New Yorker “deserves to know that when they report a crime, it will be investigated fully and fairly, that they will be seen and heard.”
“We will review the facts, gather evidence, interview witnesses and, if warranted, pursue prosecutions,” James said. “I know that you want answers. I do too. A comprehensive investigation of this nature takes time, but my office is committed to seeing it through.”
The investigation initially was closed without charges in 2024.
Last month, the woman filed a lawsuit and Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten reopened the investigation. He has since been bombarded by criticism that he abandoned the original investigation too quickly.
Van Houten has defended his decision not to prosecute, maintaining that a sworn statement by the woman prepared by police didn’t include the woman’s allegations that she was drugged against her will, incapacitated beyond the ability to consent and forced into sex.
He didn’t respond Thursday or Friday to messages seeking comment.
The attorney general will determine whether there is enough evidence to press charges, Hochul said.
“The young woman at the center of this case deserves to know that every fact will be examined and justice pursued,” she said in a statement Thursday.
The case has roiled the Ivy League school and raised questions about its response and the larger issue of how sexual assaults are handled on college campuses.
The woman, identified only as Jane Doe in court documents, told campus police in November of 2024 that she was sexually assaulted, then discussed it with the university’s internal investigators as part of Cornell’s disciplinary process.
The lawsuit against seven fraternity brothers, the university, the Chi Phi fraternity and others alleges that she was plied with drugs and alcohol, then subjected to sexual acts by a group of men while she was partially or entirely incapacitated. One of the men sent a social media message to other fraternity members alerting them to what was happening and inviting people to take part, according to the lawsuit.
Lawyers for two of the men she is suing have denied they participated in a sexual assault. One said his client didn’t touch the woman. Attempts to reach the other men or their representatives for comment have been unsuccessful.
Hochul also threw her support behind proposals to change an element of New York law that has long made it more difficult to prosecute people who have engaged in sex with someone who voluntarily became intoxicated to the point where their ability to consent was compromised.
Under the law, rape charges generally need to involve force or a clear refusal of sex, unless the victim is physically helpless due to being unconscious, or mentally incapacitated due to being drugged without their consent. New York is one of 19 states with such laws.
“If someone is too intoxicated to consent, it should not matter whether they chose to use drugs or alcohol. Voluntary intoxication is not a license for sexual assault or gang rape, period,” the governor said.
New York governors have turned to attorneys general to oversee important cases in the past.
In 2018, then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo appointed then-Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas as a special prosecutor to investigate Eric Schneiderman, who resigned as New York attorney general after women accused him of violent slapping, choking and other abuse.
In 2021, James oversaw a non-criminal investigation into sexual harassment allegations against then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo, leading to his resignation. Cuomo initially tried to choose who would lead the investigation into the allegations. He then allowed James to choose two independent attorneys to lead it instead.
James’ office also handles other criminal work and has the power under state law to investigate every death involving law enforcement in the state. But, typically, she can’t initiate criminal investigations without a referral from a local district attorney, the governor or a state agency, or an appointment like the one Hochul made Thursday.
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This story was updated to correct the spelling of Letitia James’ name.
