DA Reopens Cornell Case After Learning of Interview Transcript

Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten says his office did not receive a transcript of a November 2024 interview in which a former Cornell University student reportedly made an explicit accusation of rape. After learning of the interview’s contents, his office reopened its investigation and is pursuing additional evidence, he said. No criminal charges have been filed. Van Houten said the transcript was not provided before prosecutors decided against filing charges, and that Cornell still had not supplied it as of October 1. He said his office’s earlier decision was based on the student’s separate, signed six-page statement. Cornell has said it shared all investigatory information with the district attorney, but its response did not specify whether that included the interview transcript. Whether the document was transferred remains unresolved. The student, publicly identified as Jane Doe, described the alleged events in her signed statement to Cornell police. She said she was heavily intoxicated, felt unable to make decisions, was hit and experienced sexual activity that she felt was coerced.