The Cornell gang rape story is being scrutinized. It’s not uncommon

It's a story that's been heard many times before.

A woman says something horrific happened to her. Or maybe, at first, she says it was consensual. Or she just stays silent and tells no one anything happened at all. But then the story changes.

New York prosecutors have reopened a sexual assault investigation at Cornell University after a young woman accused members of a fraternity of gang raping her in October 2024.

Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten told USA TODAY that charges were not brought in November 2024 when the woman first gave a statement to university police, because she did not allege at the time that she was drugged or assaulted.

But in the civil lawsuit filed earlier this month, she alleged that she was pressured to use the anesthetic drug ketamine with multiple fraternity members, along with using marijuana and drinking more alcohol before the seven fraternity members allegedly assaulted her. The lawsuit also states that her consent was not possible because she was drunk, but New York laws exclude people who were voluntarily intoxicated from claiming they were unable to consent during an alleged assault.The district attorney cited discrepancies between her initial report and the…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/life/