The Cornell fraternity rape case produced a national outrage campaign two years ago, after a student claimed she was raped at a fraternity house. Her allegations surfaced two weeks ago after the woman, known as Jane Doe in the lawsuit, sued seven men, the university, her sorority and the fraternity.
People walk on the campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, in February 2024. AP Photo/Seth WenigExcept, now we find out that the accuser's original sworn statement described the encounter as consensual. Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten is reopening the investigation into allegations that seven former members of Cornell’s Chi Phi fraternity sexually assaulted a student in October 2024. And shall we take a guess as to why there were no charges filed?
According to CBS News, Van Houten said the woman’s November 2024 statement "did not allege that she was drugged against her will or gang raped" by multiple men.
"On the contrary, Jane Doe’s statement described her participation in drug use and sexual conduct as voluntary, conscious, and consensual."
That's the prosecutor’s characterization of her earlier account. It conflicts sharply with the civil lawsuit filed this month - and creates an obvious question for the reopened investigation: how should those accounts be reconciled?
The woman, identified as Jane Doe, was 20 at the time. Her lawsuit alleges th
