Cornell Appoints Former Deputy AG Sally Yates for Campus Sexual Misconduct Review
Key Takeaways
- Former Deputy U.S. Attorney General Sally Yates will lead an independent review of Cornell's sexual misconduct procedures.
- The inquiry follows student protests over the university's handling of an alleged 2024 fraternity sexual assault.
- Findings and reform recommendations will be submitted directly to a special committee of the Cornell Board of Trustees.
Cornell University announced Tuesday that it has retained former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates to conduct a comprehensive independent review of how the institution handles sexual misconduct. The inquiry comes amid escalating campus protests and widespread scrutiny regarding the university's handling of an alleged 2024 sexual assault at a fraternity house. Yates's investigation will operate independently from a parallel criminal probe currently led by New York Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor.
Under the mandate, Yates will assess Cornell's policies, support systems, disciplinary hearings, campus police responses, and Greek life oversight. Anne Meinig Smalling, chair of Cornell's Board of Trustees, emphasized that the scope extends beyond a single incident. "Sally Yates brings extraordinary experience, independence and judgment to this work," Smalling stated. "The questions raised by the Jane Doe matter warrant a rigorous examination of Cornell's response to that case, but our responsibility is broader. We have asked Ms. Yates and her team to examine Cornell's overall approach."
Yates, a veteran prosecutor who spent decades at the Department of Justice, previously served as acting attorney general before being dismissed by President Donald Trump in 2017 after challenging the legality of an executive order on immigration. In private legal practice, she gained significant experience leading institutional misconduct inquiries, including a high-profile 2022 investigation into systemic abuse and emotional misconduct within the National Women's Soccer League.
Findings and policy recommendations will be delivered directly to a special committee of Cornell's Board of Trustees, which plans to publicly share the results with the university community. Institutional leaders emphasized their objective to overhaul current campus safety practices, seeking to address longstanding structural shortcomings and improve institutional accountability for sexual violence reporting and prevention.
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