Cornell University suspends frat parties as sexual assault claim rocks campus

Cornell University has suspended parties and other social events at fraternity houses for the remainder of the academic year as outrage mounts over its handling of a woman's allegations that she was gang-raped at a fraternity house in 2024.University president Michael Kotlikoff announced the measures on Tuesday, including a new “zero tolerance” policy under which fraternity chapters would face immediate emergency suspension for violations. The restrictions on social events at Interfraternity Council houses will remain in place until the end of the 2026-27 academic year.The university will also work with New York State Police to allow independent, trauma-informed criminal investigators to investigate sexual assault allegations on campus, a role currently handled by Cornell University Police. It will also appoint a case manager to help students reporting sexual misconduct navigate the university's procedures.“These measures will provide time for a thorough review of fraternity life at Cornell to determine whether and how it can safely continue,” Kotlikoff wrote in a letter to the campus community.The announcement comes amid protests by students over the university's response to the alleged assault and fresh scrutiny of how the criminal investigation was handled.What happened at the fraternity house?The woman, identified as Jane Doe in court documents, alleges that members of the Chi Phi fraternity plied her with alcohol and drugs before several men sexually assaulted her at a party in October 2024. She filed a lawsuit last month against seven fraternity members, Cornell and others. Lawyers for two of the men have denied that their clients participated in a sexual assault, while some men questioned during the university's disciplinary proceedings said the sexual activity was consensual or that they were not involved.Jane Doe reported the incident to Cornell police in November 2024, but no criminal charges followed. Her lawyer, Thomas Giuffra, said she was “misled” about the status of the investigation, believing it was continuing when the inquiry had effectively ended. District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said he had concluded, after reviewing a summary of her account, that no crime had been committed. He has since reopened the investigation.New York Governor Kathy Hochul subsequently appointed state Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor, removing the case from Van Houten.Students have staged protests and a dining hall sit-in, demanding changes to the university's handling of sexual misconduct complaints. Cornell's trustees have also appointed former US deputy attorney general Sally Yates to review its investigative and disciplinary procedures, including the campus police response.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.