Cornell president vows review in wake of alleged student gang rape

Cornell University President Michael Kotlikoff said Saturday that the school welcomes an independent outside law firm review of its handling of a 2024 alleged gang rape case in Ithaca, New York. The move comes after a civil lawsuit and renewed backlash over the lack of criminal charges. Kotlikoff said Cornell will act before the review or reopened investigation is finished.

The plaintiff alleged in a civil suit that she was drugged with ketamine and raped by seven members of the Chi Phi fraternity.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul reopened the criminal investigation on Monday and appointed Attorney General Letitia James to lead it.

Cornell shut down the fraternity and temporarily suspended the students allegedly involved, and several were later expelled.

Published Oct 4, 2026 9:27 pm KST

Students walk through campus at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, in this photo taken on Oct. 2. AFP-Yonhap

NEW YORK — The president of Cornell University voiced support Saturday for an external review of the institution facing widespread outcry over the alleged gang rape of a student in 2024.

The incident was detailed in a graphic lawsuit filed last month, drawing harsh backlash against the Ivy League institution and New York prosecutors for not filing any criminal charges against the accused perpetrators.

"In conjunction with our board of trustees, I welcome the independent review by an outside law firm into all aspects of Cornell's handling of the 2024 matter," President Michael Kotlikoff said in a video shared on Cornell's website.

The plaintiff claimed in the civil suit that she was drugged with ketamine, assaulted and raped by seven members of the Chi Phi fraternity, a social club for male students.

"This has been one of the most difficult weeks in our history, and I know many of you are angry, saddened, and struggling," Kotlikoff continued.

"What happened to Jane Doe in 2024 is deeply disturbing and will weigh heavily on our community for years to come."

The criminal investigation into the gang rape was reopened Monday, with New York Governor Kathy Hochul appointing the state's top prosecutor, Attorney General Letitia James, to lead the effort.

Hochul slammed how the initial investigation into the complainant's claims unfolded at Cornell, which is located in Ithaca in central New York state.

"She sat for hours and told (police) exactly what happened to her. And according to new reports, she could not have been clearer that she was 100 percent confident that she had been raped," Hochul said.

Kotlikoff said in the video the school supported the decision to reopen the criminal investigation, but added that Cornell "will not wait for the investigation or the review to be completed before we act."

"We will continue taking every step necessary to make Cornell an institution that leads not just in what we say about these issues, but in the work that we do to address them."

Meanwhile, thousands of American women have taken to social media to support the alleged victim after a political commentator threatened to reveal her identity.

Messages of support with the hashtag #IAmJaneDoe have proliferated on TikTok, X and Instagram, with users claiming to be the alleged victim in a bid to make it harder to identify her.

Some US media outlets have compared the wave of online support to the #MeToo movement in 2017, when millions of women took to social media to share stories of sexual assault and harassment following revelations about Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.

Following the rape allegations, Cornell shut down the fraternity and temporarily suspended the students allegedly involved, several of whom were later expelled.

Local authorities said they declined to prosecute in 2024 because the complainant's testimony did not establish a lack of consent.

In the United States, one in four female undergraduates reported forced sexual contact or sexual contact for which they could not consent, according to a 2020 study of 33 institutions by the Association of American Universities.

康奈尔大学校长迈克尔·科特利科夫周六表示，该校欢迎一家独立的外部律师事务所对其处理2024年发生在纽约州伊萨卡市的一起涉嫌轮奸案的方式进行审查。此前，该案已提起民事诉讼，并因未提起刑事诉讼而再次引发强烈反弹。科特利科夫表示，康奈尔大学将在审查或重新启动调查之前采取行动。

原告在民事诉讼中声称，她被七名 Chi Phi 兄弟会成员用氯胺酮下药并强奸。

纽约州州长凯西·霍楚尔周一重启了刑事调查，并任命司法部长莱蒂西亚·詹姆斯领导该调查。

康奈尔大学关闭了该兄弟会，并暂时停学了涉事学生的学籍，其中几名学生后来被开除。

发布于2026年10月4日晚上9:27（韩国标准时间）

这张照片拍摄于10月2日，照片中学生们正在纽约州伊萨卡市康奈尔大学的校园内行走。（法新社-韩联社）

纽约——康奈尔大学校长周六表示支持对该校进行外部审查，此前该校因涉嫌在2024年发生一起学生遭轮奸案而面临广泛抗议。

上个月提起的一项诉讼详细描述了这起事件，引发了人们对这所常春藤盟校和纽约检察官的强烈反弹，因为他们没有对被指控的肇事者提起任何刑事指控。

“我与董事会一道，欢迎外部律师事务所对康奈尔大学处理 2024 年相关事宜的各个方面进行独立审查，”校长迈克尔·科特利科夫在康奈尔大学网站上分享的一段视频中说道。

原告在民事诉讼中声称，她被七名 Chi Phi 兄弟会（一个男生社交俱乐部）的成员用氯胺酮下药，遭到殴打和强奸。

“这是我们历史上最艰难的一周之一，我知道你们中的许多人感到愤怒、悲伤和痛苦，”科特利科夫继续说道。

“2024年发生在简·多伊身上的事件令人深感不安，并将在未来几年里给我们的社区带来沉重的心理负担。”

周一，纽约州州长凯西·霍楚任命该州首席检察官莱蒂西亚·詹姆斯领导对这起轮奸案的刑事调查，调查工作重新启动。

Hochul 猛烈抨击了康奈尔大学（位于纽约州中部伊萨卡市）对投诉人指控的初步调查是如何展开的。

“她坐了几个小时，把发生在她身上的事原原本本告诉了（警方）。根据最新报道，她非常明确地表示，她百分之百确信自己遭到了强奸，”霍楚尔说。

科特利科夫在视频中表示，学校支持重新展开刑事调查的决定，但他补充说，康奈尔大学“不会等到调查或审查完成才采取行动”。

“我们将继续采取一切必要措施，使康奈尔大学不仅在这些问题上的言论上，而且在解决这些问题的工作上，都成为引领潮流的机构。”

与此同时，在一名政治评论员威胁要公开受害者身份后，成千上万的美国女性纷纷在社交媒体上声援这位受害者。

在TikTok、X和Instagram上，带有#IAmJaneDoe标签的支持信息大量涌现，用户声称自己是受害者，试图以此增加辨认受害者身份的难度。

一些美国媒体将这波网络声援浪潮与 2017 年的 #MeToo 运动相提并论。当时，好莱坞制片人哈维·韦恩斯坦的性侵丑闻曝光后，数百万女性在社交媒体上分享了她们遭受性侵犯和性骚扰的经历。

在强奸指控曝光后，康奈尔大学关闭了该兄弟会，并暂时停学了涉事学生，其中几名学生后来被开除。

地方当局表示，他们决定在 2024 年不予起诉，因为投诉人的证词未能证明缺乏同意。

根据美国大学协会 2020 年对 33 所院校进行的一项研究，在美国，四分之一的女大学生报告称曾遭受强迫性接触或无法同意的性接触。