UPDATE: Oct. 1, 2:43 p.m. After WSKG published this article, the university changed the answer to the question: “Did Cornell Police adequately investigate the incident? Why didn’t they bring in the Ithaca Police?”
As of 2:43 pm, the answer to that question reads:
“The Cornell University Police Department investigated the matter in 2024 and shared the victim’s sworn statement and the Snapchat screenshot with the Tompkins County District Attorney's Office, which is the established protocol if the department believes it is possible a crime has occurred.
The Cornell University Police Department is a unit of the university, and its officers are special deputy sheriffs pursuant to NY Educational Law 5709 whose duties include the enforcement of law and order on Cornell property. This incident occurred in Cornell’s jurisdiction.”
The university did not respond to WSKG’s request for comment.
On Tuesday, a statement from Cornell University directed the public to a FAQ page regarding allegations of gang rape and drugging at the Chi Phi fraternity house in 2024.
“We recognize that members of our community have important questions about Cornell’s response to this incident. This FAQ is intended to answer those questions and provide additional information and clarification. We will continue to update this FAQ as necessary,” the page states.
The case has gained national attention following a lawsuit filed against the university, several Greek life organizations, and the seven men who allegedly raped the plaintiff at a Chi Phi fraternity house.
The university has been criticized for its handling of the case, which was investigated by the Cornell University Police Department (CUPD).
Cornell confirmed to NPR Wednesday that an outside counsel would conduct an independent probe into its handling of the case, after New York Governor Kathy Hochul called for a review of the investigation.
The university has publicly maintained that university police investigated the case thoroughly.
However, the university changed its FAQ page Wednesday, removing a sentence stating that CUPD “shared all investigatory information with the Tompkins County District Attorney's Office.”
The FAQ page listed 18 questions including, “Did Cornell investigate the allegations,” “What has Cornell done since the incident,” and “Does Cornell support survivors?”
One question also asked, “Did Cornell Police adequately investigate the incident? Why didn’t they bring in the Ithaca Police?”
On Wednesday morning the answer to that question was listed on the website as:
“The Cornell University Police Department investigated the matter in 2024 and shared all investigatory information with the Tompkins County District Attorney's Office, which is the established protocol if the department believes it is possible a crime has occurred. The Cornell University Police Department is a sworn law enforcement agency and performs the same functions as municipal police, but on Cornell property. This incident occurred in Cornell’s jurisdiction.”
By Wednesday afternoon, the answer had been quietly shortened and edited. Any mention of sharing “all investigatory information” with the district attorney had been removed from the page.
“The Cornell University Police Department is a unit of the university, and its officers are sworn Tompkins County deputy sheriffs whose duties include the enforcement of law and order on Cornell property,” the new statement reads. “This incident occurred in Cornell’s jurisdiction.”
Cornell University did not respond to WSKG's questions about the change to the FAQ page.
The change comes amid new reporting from CBS News New York about a transcript of an interview between the alleged victim, referred to in court filings as Jane Doe, and a Cornell University Police investigator.
Thomas Giuffra, Jane Doe's attorney, confirmed to NPR Thursday that she told investigators "I can say with 100% confidence I was raped" in transcripts of her 2024 sworn statement.
WSKG has not independently verified the transcript and NPR has not been able to obtain a copy of it.
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten told WSKG Wednesday that “If it’s [the transcript] factual, we absolutely should have been informed about what Jane Doe said to police that was not in her 6 page statement.”
Van Houten reopened the case on Monday, but said the narrative laid out in Jane Doe’s 2024 statement to Cornell police did not constitute allegations of a crime.
Rheingold Giuffra Ruffo Plotkin & Hellman LLP, the law firm representing the plaintiff in the civil lawsuit, did not respond to WSKG's requests for comment.