The Tompkins County district attorney made the decision not to pursue criminal charges in the Cornell University alleged gang rape case without ever reviewing witness statements, anonymous tips, or other evidence gathered by campus police, newly obtained records reveal.
District Attorney Matthew Van Houten based his entire determination solely on a six-page statement the alleged victim gave to police shortly after the reported incident. Cornell University Police Department investigators had conducted witness interviews and received anonymous tips in the early weeks of their inquiry into the alleged assault at the Chi Phi fraternity house on the night of October 19 into October 20, 2024.
On November 25, 2024, a campus police investigator approached Van Houten’s office to inform them about additional interviews that had been conducted. An investigator in the DA’s office responded that prosecutors had already read the victim’s statement and collectively agreed no criminal charges would be filed based on that document alone.
The alleged victim, a 20-year-old woman identified publicly as Jane Doe, claims she was sexually assaulted by multiple Chi Phi fraternity brothers over several hours while under the influence of ketamine, alcohol, and marijuana. She has since filed a civil lawsuit against Cornell University and seven fraternity members.
Police records also show investigators obtained fragments of a Snapchat conversation in which a fraternity member allegedly announced there was “free” access to Jane Doe in an alumni room of the house. Cornell police later submitted a formal data request to Snapchat, receiving 1,665 pieces of data from five accounts in December 2024. Investigators concluded that only three relevant messages were found and that none showed clear criminal conduct.
Jane Doe was not informed of the DA’s November decision until January 21, 2025, nearly two months later. Her attorney Thomas Giuffra said he had no knowledge the prosecution had been declined in November and called the delay worse than he previously believed.
Van Houten has defended his handling of the case, arguing that the witness contacts flagged by police involved fraternity members who had declined to speak on the advice of their attorneys. He also stated his office played no role in the delay of notifying Jane Doe.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul publicly questioned how a district attorney could make such a determination without interviewing the victim or reviewing the full investigation file. Hochul has since appointed state Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor to evaluate whether criminal charges are warranted.