The investigation into gang rape allegations involving a Cornell University fraternity has been reopened after a woman filed a lawsuit saying she was sexually assaulted by seven students after being plied with alcohol and drugs at age 20.
The lawsuit, the reopening of the investigation and Cornell’s response have sparked a flood of commentary on social media. Many people have criticized the school and the district attorney’s office in their posts, while some have expressed doubt about the lawsuit’s allegations. Some posted photos of the seven fraternity members.
Here’s what we know about the case:
What happened in October 2024?
The woman behind the allegations, identified only by a pseudonym in the lawsuit, filed a complaint Sept. 16, saying she was sexually assaulted at the Chi Phi fraternity house on the Ivy League campus in October 2024 after being pressured into snorting ketamine, smoking marijuana and drinking alcohol. She became completely incapacitated while frat members were sexually assaulting her, the lawsuit alleges.
The woman’s complaint includes a photo that it says shows a group chat between frat members discussing the night’s events, including one message where one member encouraged others to participate in the alleged attack.
What happened after?
In her complaint, the woman accused the university of not preventing the alleged assaults and failing to properly address sexual violence on campus.
The then-20-year-old Cornell student and sorority member went to campus police about three weeks after the alleged attack, according to the lawsuit. The fraternity and seven of its members were placed on temporary suspension that same day, the lawsuit said. It then notes, however, that the seven students were given “the opportunity to mitigate their conduct by submitting essays to Cornell.”
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said the woman did not make any claims of being gang-raped or drugged in her initial sworn statement to authorities. The prosecutor also said he was never contacted by the woman’s attorney about her statement or about reconsidering the decision not to prosecute, but he reached out to the attorney recently.
“Now that this lawsuit has been filed, that raises the question that Jane Doe believes there’s additional evidence,” Van Houten told NBC News Monday. “We want to talk to her. We want to flesh out with her what that additional evidence is.”
According to the attorney representing the woman, his client went to the Cornell University Police Department to report what happened, but “did not speak with anyone beyond the first person who took her report,” Thomas P. Giuffra told NBC News.
He alleged officers failed to follow up on key pieces of evidence, including the group chat included in the complaint.
“That available evidence was there. They could have utilized it,” he told NBC News. “What they should have done is investigated who was on that group chat and interviewed witnesses and developed evidence. That’s what investigators do, and that was not done at all.”
The school said it conducted its own investigation and issued sanctions, including expelling some students and suspending others. It also said the on-campus Chi Phi chapter was closed in 2024 and remains barred from campus.
Cornell said “none of the individuals charged were offered the opportunity to write essays as a sole consequence of their involvement.”
School officials on Monday declined to release more information on the sanctions, including how many students were expelled and suspended. Cornell said last week that federal privacy law barred it from disclosing specific information on individual students.
What’s next?
Van Houten said Monday that his office will present evidence to a grand jury as he faces questions from the public about why there were no criminal prosecutions in the case.
“Seeking justice sometimes requires us to reconsider or reopen cases when we are provided with additional evidence,” Van Houten said in a statement. “I have been asked by the community to revisit the decision whether to pursue criminal charges against the seven fraternity members. I have already begun that process, starting with our conversation with Jane Doe and her attorneys.”
The accuser is suing the men, the Chi Phi fraternity, the university, an Ithaca bar and others, seeking undisclosed damages. Her attorney did not immediately respond Monday to messages seeking comment on the prosecutor’s decision.
The university said in a statement that it supports the decision to reopen the investigation. The school said it conducted its own investigation and issued sanctions, including expelling some students and suspending others. It also said the on-campus Chi Phi chapter was closed in 2024 and remains barred from campus.
School officials on Monday declined to release more information on the sanctions, including how many students were expelled and suspended. Cornell said last week that federal privacy law barred it from disclosing specific information on individual students.
The national chapter of Chi Phi did not return phone and email messages Monday, but the lawsuit names seven Chi Phi fraternity members, including Scott Kretzschmar. An attorney for Kretzschmar strongly denied the accusations in a statement to NBC News and said his client welcomed the new investigation.
“The lawsuit against Scott Kretzachmar is not only intentionally dishonest but morally repugnant,” attorney Jeremy Saland said in a statement. “While Scott responded to and made an immature comment on Snapchat, he did nothing else. Nothing.”
Cornell said a school task force on campus sexual assault, formed in 2025, made recommendations earlier this year, several of which have been implemented while others are in development.
The task force report said a 2025 school survey showed 35% of undergraduate women and 8% of undergraduate men reported experiencing sexual assault during their time at Cornell.
Since the lawsuit was filed, the prosecutor said, his office has been flooded with phone calls, voicemails and emails about the case from people seeking answers and others making insults and threats.
“The community outrage stemming from the incomplete news and social media coverage requires that I provide an answer to why the investigation resulted in a lack of criminal charges,” Van Houten said in a statement.
Eeshaan Chaudhuri, a Cornell senior and president of the student government, said there needs to be a fresh look at the university’s initial investigation and why the district attorney’s office did not do more.
There also needs to be an examination of the culture at the fraternity, he said.
“This issue poses more of a broader question, not just at Cornell,” he said. “Obviously, these things can’t be fixed overnight.”
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