New York's governor just took the Cornell rape case away from the local DA. Gov. Kathy Hochul signed an executive order Thursday appointing Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor to oversee the investigation into a woman's allegations that she was gang raped at a Cornell fraternity house in October 2024.
"Newly released information continues to raise serious questions about the investigation conducted by the Cornell Police Department and the decision by the Tompkins County District Attorney not to prosecute," Hochul said. "This has, in turn, undercut my faith, and the public's faith, in the district attorney's ability to effectively investigate and prosecute the case at this time."
The other side tells a different story. Tompkins County DA Matthew Van Houten says his office never received more than Snapchat messages and a six-page investigative report before deciding not to bring charges — and told reporters he had not read the full transcript of the woman's detailed November 2024 interview with campus police, in which she explicitly described being raped. Cornell says its police followed protocol and shared "all investigatory information" with the DA, and the university told CNN it supports the governor's decision.
James says her office will "fully and fairly" investigate: "The Governor has entrusted my office with this investigation, and we do not take that responsibility lightly." She now has the power to bring charges or present evidence to a grand jury if warranted.