Prosecutors in upstate New York are defending their 2024 decision not to file criminal charges after allegations of a gang rape at a Cornell University fraternity.
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten called the allegations “morally disturbing,” but said the evidence available to his office at the time did not meet the standard required for prosecution.
Van Houten told ABC News that the fraternity members would have been prosecuted if the version of events circulating on social media had matched the facts established by investigators.
According to Van Houten, Jane Doe’s account of the 2024 encounter indicated that she initially consented to the sexual activity. He said she did not revoke that consent and that the fraternity members stopped when she expressed concerns rather than continuing.
The district attorney said the central issue was whether Jane Doe communicated that she no longer consented. Had she clearly withdrawn consent and the sexual activity continued, he said, that conduct could have constituted a crime. But based on her statement, prosecutors concluded that was not what had been alleged.
Van Houten acknowledged that his office did not review a photograph of the fraternity’s Snapchat group, but maintained that the messages would not have changed his assessment of the case.
He described the messages as “disgusting and vulgar and immoral.”
Even so, Van Houten said the messages did not answer the legal questions prosecutors were required to consider: whether Jane Doe consented and whether she was legally incapable of consenting. He said the Snapchat content was offensive, but did not establish whether the sexual activity was nonconsensual.
The district attorney’s comments came one day after his office announced that it would reopen the 2024 investigation. The move followed a civil lawsuit in which Jane Doe alleges that she was drugged, sexually assaulted and gang raped by seven current and former members of Cornell’s Chi Phi fraternity.
Cornell removed the Chi Phi chapter from campus following the alleged Oct. 19, 2024, incident. However, the district attorney said none of the people accused in the case had been criminally charged.
Thomas P. Giuffra, an attorney for Jane Doe, responded Monday by questioning whether prosecutors had conducted a complete investigation of his client’s allegations.
Giuffra said it was difficult to view the inquiry as thorough because Jane Doe had spoken with no one beyond the officer who initially took her complaint.
He also warned that the roughly two-year delay in investigating the case may have resulted in the loss of important evidence.
Giuffra said investigators may have missed opportunities to determine exactly what happened and identify everyone who was present that night.
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Van Houten said prosecutors intend to meet with Jane Doe to build a working relationship before asking her to testify before a grand jury this fall. His office has also requested records from Cornell’s Title IX investigation through Jane Doe, and he indicated that some fraternity members could be called to testify.
The district attorney said New York’s sexual assault and consent laws impose significant limits on when prosecutors can bring charges.
Under New York law, Van Houten said, voluntary intoxication or drug use that impairs a person’s judgment does not automatically mean that person is legally incapable of consenting. He acknowledged that the distinction is difficult, but said prosecutors must follow it when evaluating a potential criminal case.
Cornell said Monday that it supports the Tompkins County district attorney’s decision to allow the alleged victim to present her account to a criminal grand jury in the 2024 Chi Phi fraternity sexual assault case.
The university said its Title IX process was separate from the criminal investigation and lasted several months. Cornell said temporary suspensions and other restrictions were imposed during the inquiry, which later proceeded to a hearing under federal requirements. A panel of trained faculty and staff heard testimony and reviewed evidence over multiple days before issuing sanctions that included expulsions and suspensions. The university also denied that any charged students were allowed to submit essays as the sole punishment.
Attorneys for Jane Doe have alleged that the fraternity members were allowed to lessen the consequences of their conduct by submitting essays to Cornell.
The fraternity was closed in 2024, the school said.
“Any suggestion that the University did not impose consequential punishments for those involved is false,” Cornell said on Monday. “A continuation of the false narrative that there were minimal consequences in this case is irresponsible, will make survivors feel less safe and supported, and will perpetuate the underreporting of sexual assault.”
ABC News has reached out to Chi Phi for a comment.
An attorney for one of the defendants denied the allegations and said the incident detailed in the complaint “did not happen.”
“We look forward to confronting the plaintiff in a court of law for her selfishly false claims with both the evidence and her own words.” Attorney Jeremy Saland said.
Another defendant also denied engaging in sexual activity or drug use, though he acknowledged that he sent a message that was included in the complaint.
