New York shifts Cornell sex assault cases to state police
What's next: faculty begin a no-confidence vote as a special prosecutor reopens whether charges are warranted.
New York state police will handle future sexual assault complaints at Cornell University under a new agreement ordered after backlash over the school’s response to an alleged gang rape. Gov. Kathy Hochul said cases that previously went to Cornell police will now be referred to state investigators unless an accuser asks otherwise. The change follows a 2026 civil lawsuit in which a woman identified as Jane Doe alleged she was drugged, pressured to take ketamine and sexually assaulted by seven former students at the Chi Phi fraternity house in October 2024. Attorneys for the men deny the allegations or say the sex was consensual. Letitia James is overseeing a reopened criminal review, while Cornell’s Faculty Senate is voting through Nov. 6 on a nonbinding no-confidence resolution.