New York Attorney General Letitia James faces a bar ethics complaint over public comments she made about the alleged Cornell University gang rape. James made the comments before she was appointed to lead the criminal investigation, per the New York Post.
Two days before being appointed special prosecution to reopen an investigation into a 2024 alleged gang rape at Cornell University’s Chi Phi house, James shared on social media, “What this young woman has been forced to endure is horrific and unacceptable.”
“To her, and to all survivors: you’re not alone. We stand with you,” she wrote in the September 28 post on X.
The Washington, DC-based National Legal and Policy Center, which filed the complaint against James that she compromised herself by showing whose accounts of the night she believed before starting to investigate.
“It is clear that she must recuse herself from having anything to do with this case to preserve the impartiality and integrity of any investigation and prosecution,” according to the complaint filed in New York State Supreme Court.
The nine-page complaint filed to the court’s Attorney Grievance Committee stated that James should either recuse herself from the case, or be removed.
{{/usCountry}}The nine-page complaint filed to the court’s Attorney Grievance Committee stated that James should either recuse herself from the case, or be removed.
{{/usCountry}}“The violation is flagrant, obvious and therefore shocking,” said legal ethicist Jack Marshall, whose expert witness report was included with the complaint. “I find it remarkable that the top lawyer in the state of New York could possibly be so unfamiliar with the professional ethics standards of her own state, which have the force of law.”
Marshall said that James’ statement “raises suspicion of a rigged, pre-determined and illicit investigation.”
“Letitia James has exhibited a clear bias in favor of Jane Doe’s allegations and against the Chi Phi defendants,” Paul Kamenar, counsel to the National Legal and Policy Center, told the New York Post. “Letitia James has exhibited a clear bias in favor of Jane Doe’s allegations and against the Chi Phi defendants,” Paul Kamenar, counsel to the National Legal and Policy Center, told
James pushed back during a Thursday night’s attorney general debate against Republican challenger Saritha Komatireddy.
“Those comments demonstrate empathy,” James said. “And what we need now more than ever in our body politics is more empathy.”
“Politics stops at the door in my office,” she added.
“In this and every investigation, the Office of the Attorney General is committed to conducting a comprehensive review of nothing but the facts, the evidence and the law,” a spokesperson for her office told the New York Post.
Winston Lee and Gillio Lopes, two men Jane Doe accused in her lawsuit, filed court documents asking James be removed from the case. They said she “made clear… she has already reached the conclusion. … the defendants are guilty.”
James is supposed to conduct a full investigation into what happened at the Chi Phi house on October 19, 2024. If warranted, she will be required to present evidence to a grand jury.
Cornell under fire
In recent days, Cornell came under scrutiny over its response to allegations that the woman was sexually assaulted by multiple fraternity members in 2024. The woman is identified as Jane Doe in court documents. She has sued the university and seven former students.
During a student assembly hearing where students got the opportunity to voice their concerns, many speakers called for Cornell's president Michael Kotlikoff’s resignation. The president acknowledged frustration that Cornell has not communicated enough, adding that it led to mistrust. While citing “real legal and privacy limits” on what the university can disclose, he promised there would be greater transparency and more opportunities for students, parents and others to engage with university leaders.
Kotlikoff called for a “serious look at the role of fraternities and sororities in campus life.
“Being part of a group can never diminish individual responsibility for our own actions, for how we treat others or for speaking up when someone may be at risk,” he said.