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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., painted a far more sweeping picture of a Cornell University sexual assault case than what’s alleged in the underlying civil complaint, while also making claims the university disputes.
Speaking during a town hall hosted by More Perfect University on Sunday in Ithaca, New York, Ocasio-Cortez addressed allegations outlined in a civil complaint filed last month by a former Cornell student identified as Jane Doe, who alleges she was drugged and sexually assaulted by multiple fraternity members in October 2024.
“Seven men drugged and gang raped a 20-year-old woman,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
“They lured her in to a fraternity house,” she continued. “They drugged her with ketamine. They then posted to a group chat that she was incapacitated, and seven men took turns gang raping her for seven hours.”
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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., arrives ahead of the 25th anniversary commemoration ceremony at the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum in New York on Friday, Sept. 11, 2026. (Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“Their fraternity knew. This was reported to Cornell University. And after looking into this matter, they expelled two of them and made the rest write essays as their form of punishment,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “I want to be clear that the culture of rape, sexual assault, and pedophilia is protected in elite institutions across the United States and including Cornell University in this instance. It has got to stop.”
Cornell has disputed Ocasio-Cortez’s characterization of the disciplinary action, saying expulsions and suspensions were issued and that no respondent was required to write an essay as the sole consequence. The civil complaint alleges that several students who received temporary suspensions were given an opportunity to mitigate their conduct by submitting essays to the university.
Ocasio-Cortez’s comments come as a civil lawsuit filed by Doe contains graphic allegations about what happened inside the Chi Phi fraternity house nearly two years ago.
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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez addressed allegations involving Cornell University students during a town hall hosted by More Perfect University in Ithaca, New York. (TW Farlow/Getty Images)
The 101-page civil complaint names Cornell, fraternity-related entities, seven individual defendants and other defendants. It alleges that Doe was sexually assaulted by multiple fraternity members after being plied with alcohol and drugs.
According to the complaint, Doe arrived at the fraternity house intoxicated, was pressured into taking ketamine and was subjected to sexual acts without her consent.
It further alleges that one fraternity member posted a sexually explicit message about her in a fraternity Snapchat group.
The incident ended at around 5:45 a.m., according to the complaint.
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Downtown Ithaca, New York in the evening. Ithaca is home to Cornell University. (iStock)
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said his office reviewed Doe’s sworn statement in November 2024 and initially determined that the facts contained in that statement did not support criminal charges under New York law.
Van Houten said Doe’s November 2024 sworn statement “did not allege that she was drugged against her will or gang raped.” He also said the statement described her participation in drug use and sexual conduct as “voluntary, conscious, and consensual.”
Van Houten said his office has reopened an investigation into the allegations and will revisit the decision about whether to pursue criminal charges against the seven fraternity members. He said a senior prosecutor experienced in sex-crime cases is preparing the matter for presentation to a Tompkins County grand jury, which could consider Doe’s testimony and new evidence raised by the civil complaint.
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A man walks through the Cornell University campus on November 3, 2023, in Ithaca, New York. (Matt Burkhartt/Getty Images)
Scott Kretzschmar, an attorney for one of the accused students, said his client welcomes the renewed investigation. He strongly denied the allegations against his client, who he said had no sexual contact with Doe.
Attorneys representing several other accused fraternity members have also denied wrongdoing. No criminal charges have been announced in connection with the allegations.
Cornell said it supports the reopened investigation and said its own months-long investigation resulted in a range of sanctions, including expulsions and suspensions. The Chi Phi chapter was also closed and barred from campus.
“Any suggestion that the university did not impose consequential punishments for those involved is false,” the university said. “A continuation of the false narrative that there were minimal consequences in this case is irresponsible, will make survivors feel less safe and supported, and will perpetuate the underreporting of sexual assault.”
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Thursday that she has appointed Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor in the case.
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Digital has reached out to Ocasio-Cortez’s office and Cornell University for additional comment.
