On October 8, 2026, Cornell announced Sally Yates would lead an independent investigation into its handling of a 2024 alleged gang rape, as protests began and ABC News obtained videos of campus police questioning fraternity members. The accuser's texts to one of the men, saying none of the sexual conduct was illegal and she enjoyed being with the other two, are now part of the record, alongside a 101-page civil complaint filed in New York Supreme Court about two and a half weeks earlier. New York Attorney General Letitia James is reinvestigating the woman's account. What the university knew and when remains contested.