The New York prosecutor reviewing allegations that seven Cornell fraternity members gang-raped a woman defended his earlier decision not to file charges, saying the conduct described was “disgusting, despicable and clearly wrong morally,” but did not amount to a criminal offense based on the evidence then available.
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten told Fox News on Tuesday that the so-called “Cornell Seven” could still face charges if the renewed investigation uncovers “new evidence that we don’t know about.”
Van Houten said he was horrified by the alleged behavior of the Chi Phi fraternity members — Matthew Ingalls, Johnathan Newell, Winston Lee, Gillio Lopes, Diego Sarabia, Scott Norris and Scott Kretzschmar. However, he maintained that the woman’s written account did not establish that she had been drugged or sexually assaulted by multiple men.
“Back in November of 2024, my office reviewed a very detailed, six-page, single-spaced statement that was carefully provided by Jane Doe,” the district attorney said.
The statement contained “20 handwritten corrections,” which Van Houten said led investigators to believe it represented the accuser’s complete account of what allegedly occurred at the fraternity house in Ithaca, New York.
“That document was thorough, it was comprehensive, it was candid — it said exactly everything that happened,” he said.
Although the alleged conduct was “disgusting, despicable, and clearly wrong morally,” Van Houten said, the account, even if accepted as true, did not describe conduct that violated New York’s penal law. “There’s no probable cause to charge these men at that point with crimes,” he said.
The prosecutor said that assessment also applied to details contained in the woman’s more recent lawsuit, including her allegation that the fraternity members encouraged her to take drugs.
“That’s not coerced. That is not forced. She took them voluntarily. And her statement specifically says she agreed to take the ketamine,” Van Houten said.
He also argued that a disturbing Snapchat message allegedly sent by one of the fraternity members — promising the others “free p—y” with the woman after she was drugged — did not determine whether she legally consented to the sexual activity.
“It’s disgusting, it’s morally despicable … But it’s not dispositive as it relates to the penal law definition of consent,” Van Houten said.
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The woman filed her lawsuit on Sept. 14, accusing Cornell University of failing to respond seriously after she reported the alleged incident. She claimed the seven fraternity members were merely required to write essays about what happened, an account Cornell has strongly denied.
The lawsuit included the alleged “free p—y” Snapchat message as well as her claims that she had been drugged.
Van Houten confirmed that the new allegations prompted his office to reopen its review of the case. He said, however, that investigators had not yet identified conduct that clearly constituted a crime.
“We haven’t heard from her in two years, but clearly she has gained insight and has learned things and has processed things that may be new evidence,” he said.
“So in the interest of justice, we want to put this case before the grand jury so that all the evidence can be considered, not just what we knew back in November of 2024.”
“We don’t know what the new evidence is yet. We’re hoping that Jane Doe and her attorney can cooperate with us, and they have said that they will,” Van Houten added.
Van Houten, Cornell University and the Cornell Police Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The attorney for Kretzschmar, one of the seven fraternity members named in the lawsuit, condemned the case in a statement to The Post on Monday, calling it “not only intentionally dishonest but morally repugnant.”
Here’s the latest on the Cornell frat probe:
The attorney said he “welcomes any further investigation by the District Attorney who already determined not to bring charges.”
Attorney information for the other six men named in the lawsuit wasn’t available at the time of publication.
