What Cornell’s Jane Doe told police about the alleged gang rape — and what the DA says he knew

A Cornell University student described to campus police how a visit to a fraternity house devolved into an alleged gang rape , recounting being hit and feeling emotionally coerced into sexual activity while intoxicated, according to her signed police statement.

She made a more explicit accusation of rape in a November 2024 interview with campus police – the transcript of which Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten told CNN on Wednesday his office never received before deciding not to bring charges in the case that has now sparked national outrage.

Meanwhile, Cornell says police followed protocol and shared “all investigatory information” with the DA.

Questions are swirling about the initial investigation and what the district attorney was aware of about the allegations. Here’s what we know.

Heather Ainsworth/AP

The now-former student, identified publicly only as Jane Doe, described the alleged events of an October 2024 night when she was a 20-year-old Cornell sophomore. CNN obtained her 2024 statement to Cornell University Police from a source familiar with the investigation.

She recounted arriving at the Chi Phi fraternity house and dancing with one person who asked if she would be interested in participating in a threesome, telling police she was “pretty ok” with aspects of an initial encounter, but that later in the night she did not consent to other sexual activities, according to the six-page statement.

“I felt like I was unable to make any decisions because of how intoxicated I was,” she said in the statement. Doe said she felt like her overall intoxication level at one point was about an “8 out of 10” — which she said was the most intoxicated she had been in her life.

She described being “pretty incapacitated,” feeling uncomfortable, swatting one man’s hand away several times and being “horrified” as more men entered the room they were in. She said she “finally gave in” to one later encounter after she was asked “to have sex so many times,” according to the statement.

“To me that felt like coercion,” she said in the statement. “Also, I felt like due to my intoxication, they should have known how intoxicated I was based on how I was slurring my words.”

Doe made a more explicit accusation of rape in a separate document, according to CNN affiliate WCBS. The station obtained a transcript of a November 2024 interview with campus police from a source.

“I can say with 100% confidence I was raped,” Doe said in the transcript, according to WCBS.

CNN has not seen the transcript and has asked Cornell for a copy but has not heard back. The transcript is a separate document from the six-page statement that was submitted by the university.

Lauren Petracca/Reuters

Beyond alleged emotional pressure, Doe told police in the statement she was physically hit and remembered feeling hurt. “One hit in particular sent a sharp pain through me,” she said. The student also described noticing bruising on her body the following day.

Doe also described she “had become extremely uncomfortable with how this night was turning out” and thought, “if I passed out and the men had sex with me, then they could be charged with Rape,” the statement reads.

Doe told police she remembered consuming a “heavy amount” of ketamine, smoking marijuana and having “various things” poured on her body. She said she initially agreed to having drugs consumed off her body while feeling “extremely tired” but “couldn’t tell what they were pouring on me.”

Doe reported the alleged incident to Cornell police on November 8, 2024, weeks after the alleged assault, according to a civil complaint filed last month. In the days following the alleged incident, she was “traumatized, numb and unable to function or accept the horror of what had happened,” Doe’s attorney, Thomas P. Giuffra, told CNN.

Although Cornell said it provided the district attorney’s office with a police investigation report, Van Houten told CNN his office was not given the interview transcript before deciding no charges should be filed in the investigation.

Van Houten told CNN on Wednesday morning that the university had still not provided his office with the transcript.

The DA said it was Doe’s six-page statement that determined no charges should be filed, adding, “Multiple prosecutors and criminal investigators reviewed Jane Doe’s statement and correctly determined the alleged facts as set forth in the statement do not constitute a crime.”

Van Houten said he learned of the more explicit allegation made in the interview when he was contacted by WCBS on Tuesday evening and said his office will be investigating the reported statements “fully.”

When reached by CNN about the DA’s comments, a Cornell University spokesperson did not specifically address the transcript but said it “shared all investigatory information” with the DA’s office.

Alleged gang rape at Cornell turns spotlight on campus sexual assault

Cornell hasn’t responded to repeated requests to explain or clarify whether that turnover included the interview transcript.

The university likely did not break any laws if it did neglect to share all relevant documents with the DA, said former prosecutor Gary Galperin, while acknowledging that not sharing all documents would violate “all principles of what’s logical and decent.”

The DA’s comments Wednesday raised new questions about what law enforcement knew in the weeks after the alleged assault and why no criminal charges were filed.

“It is a case that, clearly, just on the face of her statement, is so complex and so nuanced,” former Westchester County DA Mimi Rocah told CNN’s Jake Tapper.

“If you’re an investigator trying to get at the truth, as this DA office should have been, they should have sought more information,” she added.

Van Houten canceled his appearance on CNN Wednesday evening, saying, “At this time I need to shift my focus to the investigation and to pursuing the additional evidence that has recently come to light.”

He said his office will keep the public informed of developments in the investigation and any action of the Tompkins County Grand Jury.

The unfolding details of Jane Doe’s case have sparked renewed attention to the ongoing topic of sexual assault awareness and prevention on college campuses.

Doe’s attorney has said Cornell expelled two of the seven accused students while the others received lesser punishments, including suspensions, workshops or written assignments.

Cornell has countered that claim, saying “none of the individuals charged were offered the opportunity to write essays as a sole consequence of their involvement.”

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Cornell has agreed to an outside investigation to “determine whether Cornell met every obligation to protect its students and pursue justice,” she told CNN. The university confirmed that it agreed to the investigation and declined to provide further details.

CNN obtains Jane Doe’s statement given to Cornell police in 2024

The Chi Phi national fraternity said in a Wednesday statement that it condemns sexual assault and drug and alcohol abuse, and three days after Doe filed a police report, the fraternity chapter “voted unanimously to remove the accused members from its rolls” and “recommended that our national fraternity permanently expel them,” which it said the fraternity’s Grand Council did in a subsequent meeting.

“These actions went beyond anything the law or Cornell University required of us,” the fraternity added in the statement.

The school also said it had closed that chapter of the Chi Phi fraternity in 2024, and that the chapter remains barred from campus.

It is unclear if any of the accused men are still Cornell students.

Lawmakers, current and former Cornell students, actors and other public figures are among those who have spoken out.

In another effort for future accountability, Ithaca Mayor Robert Cantelmo told CNN he has asked Cornell to consider an agreement to loop in the Ithaca Police Department whenever incidents involving sexual assault are reported on campus. Cantelmo said he was waiting for a response from the university.

Giuffra said it had been Doe’s dream to go to Cornell, which she no longer attends.

It’s unclear how extensive that initial police investigation was, but Doe’s attorney says he believes it was inadequate.

“It is challenging for me to understand how a thorough criminal investigation could have been conducted when she never spoke with anyone other than the officer who took her original complaint,” Giuffra said .

Help is available : For help in the US, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 or chat 24/7 on online.rainn.org .

CNN’s Danya Gainor, Jason Carroll, Gloria Pazmino, Chris Boyette, Cindy Von Quednow and Avni Trivedi contributed to this report.

据康奈尔大学一名女学生签署的警方声明，她向校园警方描述了自己去兄弟会宿舍后遭遇轮奸的经历，并讲述了自己在醉酒状态下被殴打和被迫进行性行为的经过。

她在 2024 年 11 月接受校园警察问询时，提出了更为明确的强奸指控——汤普金斯县地方检察官马修·范·豪顿周三告诉 CNN，他的办公室在决定不对此案提起诉讼之前从未收到过该问询的笔录，而该案现在已经引发了全国的愤怒。

与此同时，康奈尔表示，警方遵循了相关程序，并将“所有调查信息”分享给了地方检察官。

关于最初的调查以及地方检察官对这些指控的了解程度，人们众说纷纭。以下是我们目前掌握的情况。

Heather Ainsworth/美联社

这位现已离校的学生，仅以化名简·多伊（Jane Doe）公开身份，描述了2024年10月的一个夜晚发生的事件，当时她20岁，是康奈尔大学的一名大二学生。CNN从一位熟悉调查的消息人士处获得了她2024年向康奈尔大学警方所作的陈述。

据这份六页的声明，她回忆说，她到达 Chi Phi 兄弟会会所后，与一名男子跳舞，该男子问她是否有兴趣参与三人性行为。她告诉警方，她对最初接触的某些方面“还算可以”，但当晚晚些时候，她没有同意其他性行为。

“我当时醉得很厉害，感觉自己完全无法做任何决定，”她在声明中说道。简·多伊表示，她感觉自己一度醉得“十分之八”，她说这是她一生中最醉的一次。

她形容自己当时“几乎丧失了行动能力”，感到很不舒服，多次拍开一名男子的手，并眼睁睁地看着更多男子进入房间，感到“惊恐万分”。声明中还提到，在被“多次要求发生性关系”后，她最终“屈服”了。

“我觉得这像是胁迫，”她在声明中说。“而且，我觉得他们应该能从我说话含糊不清的样子看出我醉得很厉害。”

据CNN附属电视台WCBS报道，Doe在另一份文件中提出了更为明确的强奸指控。该电视台从一位消息人士处获得了2024年11月校园警方对Doe的讯问笔录。

据 WCBS 报道，Doe 在笔录中说：“我可以百分之百肯定地说，我被强奸了。”

CNN尚未看到庭审记录，并已向康奈尔大学索取副本，但尚未收到回复。庭审记录与大学提交的六页声明是两份独立的文件。

劳伦·佩特拉卡/路透社

除了声称遭受精神压力外，简·多伊在向警方陈述时表示，她还遭到了人身攻击，并记得当时感到疼痛。“其中一次击打尤其让我感到剧痛，”她说。这名学生还描述说，第二天她注意到自己身上有瘀伤。

声明中还写道，Doe 还表示，她“对当晚的情况感到非常不舒服”，并心想，“如果我昏过去，那些男人和我发生了性关系，那么他们可能会被指控强奸”。

简·多伊告诉警方，她记得自己服用了“大量”氯胺酮，吸食了大麻，并且有人往她身上泼了“各种各样的东西”。她说，起初她同意在感到“极度疲惫”的情况下让别人从她身上吸毒，但“根本不知道他们往我身上泼的是什么”。

根据上个月提交的一份民事诉状，原告Doe于2024年11月8日向康奈尔大学警方报案，称其在遭受性侵数周后才被起诉。Doe的律师托马斯·P·吉弗拉告诉CNN，在事发后的几天里，她“精神受到创伤，麻木不仁，无法正常生活，也无法接受所发生之事的恐怖现实”。

尽管康奈尔大学表示已向地方检察官办公室提供了警方调查报告，但范·豪顿告诉 CNN，他的办公室在决定不对此案提起诉讼之前，并未收到采访记录。

范豪顿周三上午告诉 CNN，大学方面仍未向他的办公室提供成绩单。

地方检察官表示，正是多伊提交的六页声明决定不提起诉讼，并补充说：“多名检察官和刑事调查人员审查了简·多伊的声明，并正确地认定声明中所述的所谓事实不构成犯罪。”

范·豪顿表示，他是在周二晚上接到 WCBS 的联系后才得知采访中提出的更明确的指控的，并表示他的办公室将“全面”调查报道中的言论。

当 CNN 就地方检察官的评论联系康奈尔大学时，康奈尔大学发言人没有具体回应笔录，但表示学校已与地方检察官办公室“分享了所有调查信息”。

康奈尔大学疑似轮奸案将校园性侵问题推向风口浪尖

康奈尔大学一直没有回应多次要求其解释或澄清此次人员更迭是否包括面试记录的请求。

前检察官加里·加尔佩林表示，如果大学没有向地方检察官提供所有相关文件，那么大学可能并没有违反任何法律。但他同时承认，不提供所有文件将违反“所有合乎逻辑和体面的原则”。

地方检察官周三的评论引发了新的疑问：在涉嫌袭击事件发生后的几周内，执法部门究竟掌握了多少信息？为什么没有提起刑事诉讼？

“很明显，仅从她的声明来看，这起案件就非常复杂，非常微妙，”前威彻斯特县地方检察官米米·罗卡告诉 CNN 的杰克·塔珀。

她补充说：“如果你是一名调查人员，想要查明真相，就像地方检察官办公室应该做的那样，他们就应该寻求更多信息。”

范·豪顿取消了周三晚间在 CNN 的亮相，他说：“目前我需要将注意力转移到调查上，并追查最近出现的其他证据。”

他表示，他的办公室将随时向公众通报调查进展以及汤普金斯县大陪审团的任何行动。

简·多伊案件的不断披露引发了人们对大学校园性侵犯意识和预防这一持续性话题的再次关注。

Doe 的律师表示，康奈尔大学开除了七名被指控学生中的两名，而其他学生则受到了较轻的处罚，包括停学、参加研讨会或完成书面作业。

康奈尔大学反驳了这一说法，称“被指控的任何人都没有因为参与此事而获得撰写论文的机会”。

纽约州州长凯西·霍楚尔告诉CNN，康奈尔大学已同意接受外部调查，以“确定康奈尔是否履行了保护学生和伸张正义的所有义务”。该大学证实已同意接受调查，但拒绝提供更多细节。

CNN获得了简·多伊于2024年向康奈尔大学警方提供的证词。

Chi Phi 全国兄弟会周三发表声明，谴责性侵犯、毒品和酒精滥用。在 Doe 向警方报案三天后，该兄弟会分会“一致投票决定将涉案成员从名册中除名”，并“建议全国兄弟会永久开除他们”。声明称，兄弟会的全国理事会在随后的会议上采纳了这一建议。

“这些行为远远超出了法律或康奈尔大学对我们的任何要求，”该兄弟会在声明中补充道。

学校还表示，已于 2024 年关闭了 Chi Phi 兄弟会的该分会，并且该分会仍然被禁止进入校园。

目前尚不清楚被告人中是否还有康奈尔大学的学生。

包括立法者、康奈尔大学现任和前任学生、演员以及其他公众人物在内的许多人都公开表达了他们的立场。

为了进一步加强问责，伊萨卡市市长罗伯特·坎特尔莫告诉CNN，他已要求康奈尔大学考虑达成一项协议，即一旦校园内发生性侵事件，就立即通知伊萨卡警察局介入调查。坎特尔莫表示，他正在等待大学的回应。

吉弗拉说，多伊的梦想是去康奈尔大学读书，但她现在已经不在那里读书了。

目前尚不清楚最初的警方调查范围有多广，但Doe的律师表示，他认为调查不够充分。

“我很难理解，在她除了最初受理她投诉的警官之外，从未与任何人交谈过的情况下，如何能进行彻底的刑事调查，”吉弗拉说。

可以获得帮助：在美国，如需帮助，请拨打全国性侵犯热线 1-800-656-4673 或访问 online.rainn.org 进行 24/7 全天候聊天。

CNN 的 Danya Gainor、Jason Carroll、Gloria Pazmino、Chris Boyette、Cindy Von Quednow 和 Avni Trivedi 对本报道亦有贡献。