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25 signatures reached
To: Cornell University Police Department (CUPD) and the Tompkins County District Attorney’s Office
Justice Beyond an Apology: Demand a Full Investigation and Legal Accountability
Rape should never be undermined, minimized, overlooked, or treated as something that can be resolved with an apology or a written assignment. This is not something that should be brushed aside as a mistake, bad judgment, or a minor disciplinary issue. We are calling for a full and thorough investigation into what happened and the actions of all seven individuals involved.
We are asking Cornell University Police and the appropriate law-enforcement authorities to take this matter seriously and investigate it to the fullest extent possible. All available evidence should be preserved and examined, relevant witnesses should be interviewed, and communications, recordings, and other documentation should be reviewed where legally appropriate. Each individual’s involvement should be examined based on the evidence, regardless of their status, reputation, or affiliation with Cornell.
These are not allegations that should simply be overlooked or buried beneath a superficial response. A reported rape deserves a serious investigation and a serious response. We are not asking for this matter to be reduced to an apology, an essay, or an internal disciplinary exercise. We are asking for accountability through the appropriate legal process. If the investigation establishes that criminal conduct occurred, those responsible should face the charges and consequences provided by law.
No one should be shielded from accountability because of who they are or where they attend school. We are asking Cornell and law enforcement to go beyond the surface, examine this matter from beginning to end, preserve the evidence, establish the facts, and ensure that whatever consequences are warranted by the evidence and the law are actually pursued.
Why is this important?
This matters because rape is a serious act of sexual violence and should never be minimized, overlooked, or treated as something that can be resolved with an apology or a written assignment. When parents send their children to college, they trust that their sons and daughters will be able to pursue their education in an environment where their safety and dignity matter. They do not send their children away expecting something this horrific to happen to them.
When an incident this serious occurs, the response matters. The people responsible should not be allowed to simply move forward as though nothing happened. If the evidence establishes that these individuals committed criminal acts, they should be held accountable through the appropriate legal process and face the consequences provided by law. They should not be protected from accountability because they are students, athletes, members of an organization, or affiliated with a prestigious university.
It is especially disturbing to think that these seven individuals have mothers, sisters, aunts, cousins, friends, and other women in their own lives. Yet regardless of who they know or what their personal relationships are, every woman deserves to have her dignity and bodily autonomy respected. Sexual violence is not something that should ever be excused, minimized, or forgotten.
We are asking for these individuals to be treated with the seriousness that the conduct under investigation warrants—not shielded, excused, or given a superficial consequence that allows the matter to disappear. If criminal wrongdoing is established, accountability should follow.
This is bigger than one incident. It is about whether students can trust their university to take sexual violence seriously, whether families can trust that their children will be protected and heard, and whether people who commit serious wrongdoing will actually face appropriate consequences. We are asking Cornell and law enforcement to go beyond words and conduct a complete investigation, follow the evidence wherever it leads, and ensure that justice and accountability are not sacrificed for convenience or reputation.