The woman behind the Cornell gang rape allegations asked a New York judge to protect her identity as her civil lawsuit and the reopened criminal investigation moved forward.
In a sworn court statement, the woman identified as Jane Doe said she stopped attending Cornell University after the alleged October 2024 assault at the Chi Phi fraternity house. She argued that publicly revealing her identity could affect the life she had worked to rebuild.
Cornell gang-rape victim asks judge to protect her identity over fears of retaliation from alleged attackers
The Cornell gang-rape accuser asked the court to allow her to continue pursuing the lawsuit anonymously. She also wanted the judge to prevent the defendants from disclosing her identity to anyone other than their attorneys.
Jane Doe said the possibility of public identification had caused her severe anxiety, depression and sleeplessness. As per TMZ she expressed concerns about potential retaliation from the men she accused of attacking her.
The woman also requested an “attorneys’ eyes only” designation for particularly sensitive personal information. Her request covered details including her home address, phone number, email address, date of birth and Social Security number.
The Cornell lawsuit accused seven members of the Chi Phi fraternity of drugging and sexually assaulting Jane Doe inside the fraternity house. According to her allegations, the men gave her ketamine before the alleged assault.
She also claimed that one fraternity member sent a message inviting others upstairs and wrote that there was “free p***y.”
The lawsuit named Matthew Ingalls, Johnathan Newell, Winston Lee, Gillio Lopes, Diego Sarabia, Scott Norris and Scott Kretzschmar as the alleged attackers. The supplied source did not state that a court had found any of the men liable or guilty of the allegations.
The latest court filing came as authorities renewed their examination of the Cornell sexual assault allegations.
The Tompkins County District Attorney reopened the Cornell rape investigation and planned to present the case to a grand jury with Jane Doe’s cooperation.
Jane Doe’s new request focused specifically on maintaining her anonymity and restricting access to her personal information while the Cornell fraternity case continued through the legal system.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
