Ex-Cornell student sues fraternity members and college over alleged gang rape and claims several were punished with essay-writing
A former Cornell University student is suing the college and seven male fraternity members, alleging she was drugged and gang-raped for hours in a brutal attack, and that the university failed to protect her or adequately punish those responsible.
In a 101-page civil complaint, filed September 14 in New York County Supreme Court, the plaintiff, identified as Jane Doe, alleges the assault occurred in October 2024 at Cornell’s Chi Phi fraternity house in Ithaca, New York.
According to the documents, obtained by The Independent, Jane Doe was 20 years old at the time and a member of a campus sorority. The suit alleges she was visiting a friend at the house and was intoxicated when two male students pressured her into snorting a substance they claimed was ketamine.
The lawsuit states that after an initial sexual assault, one of the men sent a message to the fraternity’s active Snapchat group chat stating there was “free p****” and inviting additional members to join. Multiple male students later arrived, and Doe was subjected to an hours-long assault by seven of them, according to the complaint.
The filing details graphic abuse including men snorting lines of ketamine off her body, moving her between rooms, and continuing to rape and sexually assault her while she was incapacitated, before she finally lost consciousness around 5:45 a.m.
The lawsuit identifies the alleged perpetrators and the national and local sorority chapter. It also names two local bars, and several university-affiliated individuals as co-defendants for their alleged roles in failing to monitor, supervise or protect the plaintiff.
As the exchange unfolded in the Snapchat thread, one of the accused members allegedly sent a message celebrating the encounter, writing: “I f****** love chi phi.”
Doe reported the incident to the Cornell University Police Department approximately three weeks later on November 8, 2024. An internal Title IX investigation was launched in January 2025, and at least 12 hearings followed. But Doe’s attorney Thomas Giuffra said that the university’s response was severely lacking.
Giuffra told The Independent that graduating from Cornell was his client’s dream from childhood after years of hard work.
“Her dreams were destroyed by a group of men who sought to abuse and humiliate her,” Giuffra said. “She was subjected to unspeakable horrors that I have not seen in my 30 years of handling abuse cases.”
He pointed to the fraternity’s group chat messages as evidence of their cruelty.
“The arrogance and cruelty of these men was demonstrated in the fraternity group message which went to every single member of the fraternity inviting them to rape Ms. Doe,” Giuffra said. “It is truly disheartening that nobody tried to help her and instead laughing comments were made. The lack of humanity displayed was surprising for a group of men who are supposed to be the best and brightest.”
Of the seven male students named in the civil filing, only two were ultimately expelled by Cornell, according to Doe’s legal team. The remaining students received lesser administrative sanctions, such as temporary suspensions, required workshops or essay-writing assignments.
Court filings show that around November 8, 2024, temporary suspensions were issued for several male students who “were afforded the opportunity to mitigate their conduct by submitting essays to CORNELL.”
