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ITHACA, N.Y. — A former high-ranking Department of Justice official will look at how Cornell handles sexual misconduct complaints, university trustees announced Tuesday as they tried to address an outpouring of anger over allegations of a 2024 gang rape at a fraternity house.
Sally Yates, who was a deputy attorney general in the Obama administration, will spearhead the review, the trustees said. The assessment is to include how the Ivy League university investigates reports of sexual assault and sexual harassment, how the disciplinary process works, campus police responses and more.
“It is imperative that Cornell be willing to examine itself with the same rigor we expect of others,” trustee Chair Anne Meinig Smalling said in a statement.
The announcement comes after days of outrage and a large demonstration over Cornell’s response to a complaint from a woman known publicly only as Jane Doe. She told campus police in November 2024 that she had been sexually assaulted by multiple Chi Phi fraternity brothers the month before after being pressured into drinking and taking drugs.
No criminal charges have been filed. The Chi Phi chapter at Cornell was shut down, and the Ivy League university has said it expelled some students and suspended others.
Yates will look at how the woman’s complaint was handled and at the oversight of fraternities, sororities and other campus groups, Cornell said.
The woman sued the university, seven former students, the fraternity and others last month. The suit put a new, nationwide spotlight on the allegations and how the campus police, university and local prosecutor had reacted.
New York’s attorney general is now conducting a criminal investigation, and the state’s governor called for an independent review of Cornell’s handling of the matter — the review that Yates now will lead.
Cornell students, professors and others thronged a campus plaza Monday to protest the university’s response to the matter and demand more accountability, greater transparency, an overhaul of the disciplinary process, and other changes.
Yates had a decades-long career at the Justice Department, serving for years as the top federal prosecutor in Atlanta and later as a deputy attorney general.
She achieved particular prominence in January 2017 when, as acting attorney general in the early days of the Trump administration, she directed Justice Department attorneys to not defend the constitutionality of U.S. President Donald Trump’s refugee and immigration ban. She was swiftly fired, with Trump accusing her of betrayal and insubordination.
Yates also generated headlines when it emerged that, in a conversation days before her departure, she had expressed alarm to the Trump White House about contacts that Trump’s new national security adviser, Michael Flynn, had had with the Russian ambassador during the presidential transition period. Flynn later was fired.
Yates has been in private practice since her departure from the Justice Department. Her practice at the King & Spalding law firm includes conducting independent investigations for outside organizations and companies.
She led a high-profile inquiry into alleged abuse and misconduct, including claims of harassment and coercion, at the National Women’s Soccer League. The investigation concluded in 2022 with a finding of systemic abuse.
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If you or someone you know is struggling with sexual assault or trauma, the following resources are available to support people in crisis:
- Call 911 if you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety.
- The Canadian Association of Sexual Assault Centres’ website has a comprehensive list of sexual assault centres in Canada that offer information, advocacy and counselling.
- The Ending Violence Association of Canada’s website has links to helplines, support services and locations across Canada that offer sexual assault kits.
- Indian Residential School Survivors Society crisis lines: +1 866 925 4419 or +1 800 721 0066 (24/7)
- Toronto Rape Crisis Centre crisis line: +1 416 597 8808 (24/7)
- Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline: +1 833 900 1010 (24/7)
- Trans Lifeline: +1 877 330 6366
- Suicide Crisis Helpline: call or text 988 (24/7)
- Sexual Misconduct Support and Resource Centre for current and former Canadian Armed Forces members: +1 844 750 1648
- Read about your rights as a victim on the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime website.
