Editor’s note: This article references sexual assault.
The district attorney for Tompkins County told ABC News that his office is reopening the criminal investigation into the alleged gang rape at Cornell’s Chi Phi house in 2024 after a civil lawsuit was filed by the plaintiff, Jane Doe, on Sept. 14.
The plaintiff is suing Cornell University, several Chi Phi fraternity organizations, seven current and former students, several sorority organizations, the former president of Cornell’s Chi Phi chapter, a local bar and several unnamed individuals.
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said that the allegations in the civil lawsuit are “dramatically different” than the plaintiff’s statement to police in 2024, according to ABC News.
“We want to reexamine whether there's additional evidence that we were not aware of in November of 2024, that exists now that would change our assessment of the case and would result in the grand jury finding that there was criminal conduct,” Van Houten said to ABC News.
Van Houten added that his office has not decided whether to bring criminal charges related to the incident yet, according to ABC News.
In a statement to The Sun, Jeremy Saland, attorney for Scott Kretzschmar, said that no investigative body found Kretzchmar liable for sexual assault as alleged by the lawsuit.
“Even the District Attorney’s Office, led by a chief prosecutor with the duty to pursue justice and uphold the rule of law without bias or favor, filed no charges against Scott because what alleged did not happen,” Saland wrote. “This isn’t a conspiracy. It is just a fact and evidence-based reality, even if an inconvenient one for the plaintiff.”
Van Houten claims that the plaintiff’s statement to the Cornell University Police Department two years prior did not allege that she was drugged or that she did not consent to engage in sexual activities.
“She never says that she was drugged without her knowledge. She admits to taking drugs and alcohol voluntarily and with knowledge. She does not allege that she was forced to engage in any acts. She does not say that she was physically helpless or unconscious or incapacitated at any point during the time at the fraternity house,” Van Houten said.
Thomas P. Giuffra, attorney for Jane Doe, responded to Van Houten’s comment on the plaintiff’s initial statement to authorities in an interview with ABC News, saying that in his experience, “speaking with an abuse survivor requires delicacy, understanding and specialized training.”
A typical University police officer would not have the specialized training needed, according to Giuffra, and that expertise would generally come from a trained detective or district attorney.
“However, Ms. Doe was never contacted by anybody with those skills,” Giuffra told ABC News.
Van Houten noted in the interview with ABC News that his office relied on CUPD’s investigation and acknowledged that his office did not independently investigate the issue.
Van Houten also said his office was never provided with an image of a Snapchat group titled “Chi Phi Actives,” which is included in the lawsuit and allegedly shows an invitation for other Xi chapter members to come upstairs and join the assault.
Criticizing the legal system, Saland wrote to The Sun that anyone can make a complaint, but it does not mean they should. He added that “we look forward to confronting the plaintiff for her selfishly false claims.”
He maintains that “Scott [Kretzchmar] never sexually assaulted or even touched the plaintiff in any way.”
Giuffra said that his client reported the incident to CUPD because a crime was committed, according to ABC News.
“It was the obligation of the police to investigate the complaints,” he said to ABC News. “They were given the group chat inviting the members of the fraternity to rape my client. This was a critical piece of evidence supporting that a crime had occurred. Despite this there was no follow-up with Ms. Doe either by the Cornell Police or the Tompkins County District Attorney.”
Cereese Qusba is a member of the Class of 2027 in the College of Arts and Sciences. She was a news editor for the 143rd Editorial Board and is a senior editor for the 144th Editorial Board. She can be reached at cqusba@cornellsun.com.
