Cornell University named Sally Yates, the former acting U.S. attorney general, on Tuesday to lead an independent internal review of a former student’s rape claim amid growing outrage about how it was first handled. Ms. Yates, 62, will also examine the school’s policies related to sexual assault allegations, including how they are investigated and what support is given to students.
Anne Smalling, the head of the committee that hired Ms. Yates, told The New York Times the university was obligated to the woman who had filed the rape complaint. “We owe it to her and to our community to take a hard look at what happened so that we can determine what we can do better around both prevention and response,” she said. Ms. Yates and the New York white-collar law firm King and Spalding, where she is a partner, will “have independence in conducting the review,” Cornell said.
Students and politicians have demanded answers from Cornell after a former student sued the university, seven men, a fraternity and her sorority in September, claiming she was sexually assaulted in October 2024 at a fraternity party. The woman, identified as Jane Doe in court papers, filed a report with campus police, which was then passed to the Tompkins County district attorney, who declined to file charges. The university conducted its own monthslong investigation, and a three-member panel expelled two men and disciplined others. Gov. Kathy Hochul rebuked the district attorney and appointed the state’s attorney general, Letitia James, to review the evidence.
Ms. Yates is a high-profile choice for a role that will inevitably be deeply scrutinized. She previously led the U.S. Soccer Federation’s investigation into allegations of abuse and misconduct in women’s professional soccer, and currently leads King and Spalding’s crisis management practice. She has spent nearly four decades with the Department of Justice.
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