Woman in Cornell rape case the target of threats - lawyer

The woman who has alleged that she was drugged and raped by Cornell University students has been the target of threats, her lawyer has said.

Thomas Giuffra, who represents the woman identified as Jane Doe, told CNN that people have threatened to silence or harm her if she does not withdraw her civil lawsuit alleging that several members of a Cornell fraternity drugged and raped her in 2024.

"She's received multiple threats," Mr Giuffra said ‌on CNN's State of the ⁠Union.

Mr Giuffra said he had also been threatened.

"I'm not afraid of these people," he said. "But the threats, the abuse to protect what's going on, the status quo - these guys are disgusting. They should stay in their mother's basement and stay out of the world."

The incident was detailed in a graphic lawsuit filed last month, drawing harsh backlash against the Ivy League institution and New York prosecutors for not filing any criminal charges against the accused perpetrators.

The plaintiff claimed in the civil suit that she was drugged with ketamine, assaulted and raped by seven members of the Chi Phi fraternity, a social club for male students.

Following the rape allegations, Cornell shut down the fraternity and temporarily suspended the students allegedly involved, several of whom were later expelled.

Local authorities said they declined to prosecute in 2024 because the complainant's testimony did not establish a lack of consent.

Cornell University President Michael Kotlikoff said ‌in a video message yesterday that the university will examine the role of fraternities and sororities on campus following the outcry ⁠over the school's handling of the allegations. He also voiced support for an external review of the institution.

"In conjunction with our board of trustees, I welcome the independent review by an outside law firm into all aspects of Cornell's handling of the 2024 matter," Mr Kotlikoff said in the video shared on Cornell's website.

"This has been one of the most difficult weeks in our history, and I know many of you are angry, saddened, and struggling.

"What happened to Jane Doe in 2024 is deeply disturbing and will weigh heavily on our community for years to come."

Special prosecutor

Since the lawsuit was filed last month, prosecutors in Tompkins County, New York, have been criticised for their initial handling of the allegations in 2024. ⁠New York Governor Kathy Hochul last week named state Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor ⁠to look into the case.

Ms Hochul slammed how the initial investigation into the complainant's claims unfolded at Cornell, which is located in Ithaca in central New York state.

"She sat for hours and told (police) exactly what happened to her. And according to new reports, she could not have been clearer that she was 100 percent confident that she had been raped," Ms Hochul said.

Mr Kotlikoff said the school supported the decision to reopen the criminal investigation, but added that Cornell "will not wait for the investigation or the review to be completed before we act".

"We will continue taking every step necessary to make Cornell an institution that leads not just in what we say about these issues, but in the work that we do to address them."

US President Donald Trump, a critic of Ms James for years, lambasted the decision to appoint her. "And I feel badly for whoever she's looking at because they won't get a fair shake," Mr Trump told reporters on Friday.

Asked about Mr Trump's comment, Jane Doe's lawyer Mr Giuffra said the case shouldn't be politicised. "It has nothing to do with ‌politics," Mr Giuffra said.

Wave of online support

Meanwhile, thousands of American women have taken to social media to support the alleged victim after a political commentator threatened to reveal her identity.

Messages of support with the hashtag #IAmJaneDoe have proliferated on TikTok, X and Instagram, with users claiming to be the alleged victim in a bid to make it harder to identify her.

Some US media outlets have compared the wave of online support to the #MeToo movement in 2017, when millions of women took to social media to share stories of sexual assault and harassment following revelations about Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.

In the United States, one in four female undergraduates reported forced sexual contact or sexual contact for which they could not consent, according to a 2020 study of 33 institutions by the Association of American Universities.