The Ithaca Common Council voted 9-1 on Wednesday night to halt city permits for Cornell University and affiliated groups, including fraternities, following criticism over the university’s handling of rape allegations. The moratorium will last until November 5 and restricts Cornell from obtaining new permits for events in public areas like the Ithaca Commons, citing public safety concerns. Some graduate students expressed concern that this could disrupt unrelated activities and cause financial losses. The measure also mandates that Cornell refer investigations involving sexual and violent crimes to the Ithaca Police Department. This decision comes amid ongoing legal challenges and renewed scrutiny over how rape allegations are managed at the university.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-08,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
The Ithaca Common Council voted late Wednesday night to stop issuing city permits to Cornell University and affiliated student groups, including fraternities, following widespread criticism of the Ivy League school's handling of rape allegations made by a former student.
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Council → vote → student
After hours of debate, the council voted 9-1 in favor of a moratorium, which temporarily bars Cornell from obtaining new permits for assemblies, parades and special events on the Ithaca Commons and activities requiring noise permits, citing public safety concerns.
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which → vote → concerns
The measure drew support from numerous Cornell students and Ithaca residents, although some graduate students raised concerns that the restrictions were overly broad and could disrupt activities unrelated to Greek life.
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restrictions → draw → life
One graduate student warned that the moratorium could result in canceled or delayed events, lost deposits, reduced access to venues and disruptions to conferences.
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moratorium → warn → conferences
The moratorium will stay in place until Nov. 5, unless the council extends it at a later date.
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council → stay → date
The measure also includes an amendment that requires Cornell to refer investigations involving sexual and violent crimes to the Ithaca Police Department, though its unclear how that will be enforced.
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that → include → Department
The moratorium comes after the student, identified as Jane Doe, filed a lawsuit in September accusing seven former Chi Phi fraternity members of drugging and raping her on the night of Oct. 19, 2024, and into the following morning.
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student → come → morning
In the lawsuit, she alleges she arrived to the frat house already intoxicated, after which the men pressured her into taking ketamine and other substances.
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men → allege → ketamine
The men have denied wrongdoing, with some maintaining the sexual activity was consensual and others denying they participated.
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they → deny → wrongdoing
The fraternity was suspended on Nov. 8, 2024, the same day Doe reported sexual assault allegations to campus police, according to Doe's civil complaint.
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Doe → suspend → complaint
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten, who initially declined to pursue charges, has said Doe's Nov. 2024 sworn statement did not allege that she was drugged against her will or gang-raped and, instead, described her participation in drug use and sexual conduct as "voluntary, conscious, and consensual."
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she → decline → use
However, CBS New York obtained the transcript of the Cornell police interviews with Jane Doe on Nov. 14 and 15, 2024, during which she told investigators: "I can say with 100% confidence I was raped."
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I → obtain → confidence
Van Houten said he was never provided the full transcript.
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he → say → transcript
Late last month, he announced his office was reopening the case because the allegations contained in Jane Doe's lawsuit differed from her sworn statement nearly two years earlier.
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allegations → announce → statement
In an interview with The Associated Press on Wednesday, Jane Doe's lawyer, Thomas Giuffra, said Cornell police led her to believe the criminal investigation remained active even though Van Houten had decided against filing charges just days after she first spoke with investigators.
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she → say → investigators
Van Houten has said he instructed Cornell police to inform Jane Doe that charges would not be pursued, but acknowledged he never spoke directly with her or her attorney.
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he → say → her
Gov. Kathy Hochul effectively took the investigation out of Van Houten's hands on Oct. 1, by appointing Attorney General Letitia James as a special prosecutor on the case.
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Hochul → take → case
Newly released information continues to raise serious questions about the investigation conducted by the Cornell Police Department and the decision by the Tompkins County District Attorney not to prosecute an alleged sexual assault on Cornell University's campus in October 2024," Hochul said in a statement.
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Hochul → release → statement
She added: "This has, in turn, undercut my faith, and the public's faith, in the District Attorney's ability to effectively investigate and prosecute the case at this time."
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This → add → time
On Wednesday, one of the men named in Jane Doe's lawsuit petitioned a court to remove James from the case, accusing her of bias over a social media post she made days before her appointment in which she called what Doe allegedly endured "horrific and unacceptable," The Associated Press reported.
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Press → name → what
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Press → contribute → report
The Aporia
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