In October 2024, students at the prestigious Cornell University raped a fellow student. Two years later, the case gained worldwide attention when the perpetrators were charged, after the university management had largely remained inactive.

Cornell University is located in the small town of Ithaca in the US state of New York. This is a member of the infamous Ivy League, whose universities are considered training grounds for the US elite. But in recent days, Cornell University's reputation has changed: worldwide, its name is now associated with the systematic protection of rapists from consequences.

The reason is an incident from October 2024. A Cornell University student visited a friend in a house belonging to the Chi Phi fraternity. The already drunk woman was first given more alcohol to drink at this party in the “Frat House” (short for “fraternity”). At this point she isaccording to court documentsalready no longer able to express clear consent.

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After a while her friend took her to a room upstairs. There he and another man urged the woman to consume the powerful narcotic ketamine. She was also given marijuana and additional amounts of hard alcohol. The drugs left the victim in a defenseless state. The two men then began to perform sexual acts on the woman's body - without her ever consenting. On the contrary: in addition to the lack of consent, the woman also tried to push away another man who had arrived with her hand.

Meanwhile, one of the three men originally involved sent a message to a chat group run by the local branch of Chi Phi on the messenger service Snapchat. Accordingly, those who came to the building in question were promised “free” sex. According to a corresponding screenshot available to the court, the reactions were exclusively positive and indicated admiration for the sender.

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Four other men then entered the room. The total of seven men distributed and consumed ketamine powder on the victim's naked body. Once again, protective reflexes such as attempting to hide under the blanket were deliberately ignored. After a while, five of the perpetrators left the room. What remained behind was the man who had originally invited the affected person into the house, as well as another man who was brought in through the Snapchat message. Both forced the woman to consume more ketamine and raped her again. Only after their victim fell unconscious did they stop.

A few hours later, the victim woke up and returned to her own accommodation on the grounds of Cornell University in a state of shock. “What happened to me was terrible and deeply disturbing,” she told the student newspaper The Cornell Daily Sun. “Almost two years later, I still carry the consequences of this with me every day and every night.”

Hardly any consequences from the management of the university

At the beginning of November, the victim finally reported the events to the police stationed on campus. As a result, the seven accused were initially suspended from the university. However, they were given the opportunity to have their sentences reduced by writing essays about their crimes. It later emerged that two of the accused were expelled - the remaining five were allowed to continue studying.

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In November 2024, the university released an official statement and in January 2025 it commissioned an investigation into “sexual misconduct” on the Cornell University campus. Their results were published on November 4, 2025. Their conclusion is that there is a disturbing level of sexual assault at Cornell University. The local branch of the Chi Phi fraternity was closed in response to the allegations.

Nevertheless, no criminal charges were filed by any informed party. No legal action was taken by the other members of the Snapchat group, the campus police, or the university administration. Only the criminal complaint filed by those affected ensured that the case was examined in sufficient detail by a court.

Resistance from the student body

The student newspaper The Cornell Daily Sun played a central role in publicly addressing the case: Editor Cereese Qusba researched for months and reported in detail about the lawsuit for the first time in September 2025. In an editorial, the editorial board harshly criticized the university: "We refuse to allow this victim to be reduced to another story. Cornell has failed to protect its students."

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Even afterwards, the newspaper continued to report on the consequences of the case and particularly focused on the university's lack of transparency. In an article, the editorial team also published the names of the seven men accused in the lawsuit and criticized the fact that for almost two years little information was known about the university's handling of the allegations. According to its own account, The Cornell Daily Sun wanted to prevent the case from being forgotten.

The actions of the group of perpetrators known as the “Cornell Seven” have become a political issue in the USA and beyond. High-ranking politicians such as the governor of the state of New York and oneCongressmandemanded a review of the case by the responsible court. In addition, activists set up aWebsiteone on which detailed information and alsothe court filecan be viewed in the case.

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The case is made worse by “the cruel inaction with which the university administration has handled this incident over the past two years,” one saidpetitionfrom the university's alumni community. The alumni are demanding personnel consequences, more transparency in the investigations as well as a public apology, independent audit and binding new guidelines and want to withhold their support and donations until then.

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