STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
We should warn you first that this story includes descriptions of sexual violence. Kathy Hochul, the governor of New York state, has appointed the state's attorney general, Letitia James, as a special prosecutor to take over the alleged rape case at Cornell University. The governor says she does not have faith that the local prosecutor can manage the case - the prosecutor who decided not to investigate or press charges a couple of years ago. NPR has confirmed that the woman who alleged she was raped at a Cornell frat house gave campus police a very detailed account, but those details never made it to the local prosecutor. NPR's Brian Mann is in Ithaca, New York, covering all this. And, Brian, what is Governor Hochul saying?
BRIAN MANN, BYLINE: Yeah, Steve. She says that yesterday's big revelations about this case raise serious questions about how it was handled not just by that DA, but also by Cornell University and the campus police. Hochul spoke at a press conference a short time ago.
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KATHY HOCHUL: In what world would the police learn from a victim that she'd been literally gang raped while intoxicated by five men in a fraternity house and not elevate those allegations to the district attorney. In what world does the district attorney not even interview her or anyone else involved?
MANN: Now, Steve, the woman has actually alleged that seven men were involved in this incident. It's unclear why Hochul mentioned only five. NPR did reach out to the local DA, Matthew Van Houten, for his comment on this. We haven't heard back.
INSKEEP: Oh, I appreciate that. Let's just talk a little bit more about the details here. It seems that the victim in this case - there was a written statement that she signed but also something else. There was more evidence. What happened here?
MANN: Yeah. So we know now that the woman offered this lengthy, detailed and really graphic description of her alleged assault during an initial investigation. This is in 2024. And as part of that interview, she told police at the time, quote, "I can say with 100% confidence" that "I was raped." Van Houten says he only received a six-page condensed summary of that that the woman had signed, and based on that six-page account, he's been describing her involvement in drug use and sexual activity at the frat party as consensual. Again, it now appears many of the key details she provided weren't given to him before he shut down the investigation. As you heard there, Steve, Hochul called him out for not requesting all of the woman's interviews and transcripts and not talking with her directly.
INSKEEP: So there were hundreds, if not thousands of additional words from the victim, and the prosecutor never saw them and maybe never asked for them.
MANN: That's right, tons of nuance, lots of pretty harrowing details that she included in this lengthy interview with police. None of that made it through to the six-page filter - this final statement that we've seen parts of. So something broke down in that process (inaudible).
INSKEEP: Including the sentence, quote, "I was raped." Now, you were at a student gathering last night. What was that like?
MANN: Hundreds of students gathered in this stately Ivy League hall, Steve. They were devastated, heartbroken. Some people sobbed as they spoke. Savita Sastry is one of the women who testified.
SAVITA SASTRY: There was rage. It was really, really nice to see people be emotional about this. We are her. We experienced that. And this entire week, we had to think about the fact that we were raped.
MANN: And I heard this from a lot of women. They know women on this campus who've experienced sexual violence, and they want big changes to the culture.
INSKEEP: What's the university saying?
MANN: Not much. NPR has repeatedly asked for an interview. They've said no. One important detail I want to mention quickly - earlier in the week, Cornell claimed on its website that the police did share all investigatory information with the prosecutor's office. They then quietly removed that claim. We don't know why.
INSKEEP: NPR's Brian Mann in New York. Thanks so much.
MANN: Thanks, Steve. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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