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Cornell University has appointed former U.S. Attorney General Sally Yates to lead an independent investigation into how the university handles sexual harassment, assault, and misconduct on campus. The university announced the decision on Tuesday, following national outrage over a former Cornell student’s allegation that she was gang-raped and drugged at a campus fraternity in 2024.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is also investigating the allegation. A spokesperson for James’s office confirmed that staff members have spoken with the Tompkins County District Attorney, the alleged victim’s attorney, and several candidates for outside legal counsel to support that separate inquiry.
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Scope of the Cornell Investigation
The independent review led by Yates will examine how Cornell responded to the allegations and whether the university followed its own policies and procedures. More broadly, the investigation will assess Cornell’s overall approach to sexual misconduct, covering everything from prevention to response.
The review will also look at how the university investigates reports, how it handles disciplinary decisions, and how it supports affected students. In addition, investigators will examine the role of campus police and how officers coordinated with other law enforcement agencies and prosecutors.
Cornell’s Special Committee of the Board of Trustees chair, Anne Meinig Smalling, expressed confidence in the appointment. “Sally Yates brings extraordinary experience, independence and judgment to this work,” Smalling said in a statement.
Attorney Andrew Miltenberg, who represents accused Chi Phi member Gillio Lopes, also welcomed the probe. “Sally Yates has tremendous experience as a prosecutor and investigator, and she and her team should have access to the full record and the freedom to follow the facts wherever they lead,” Miltenberg said. Lopes denies sexually assaulting the former student and disputes the Title IX finding against him. Attorneys for several other accused men have similarly denied wrongdoing or challenged the alleged victim’s account.
Yates’s Career and Background
Yates spent nearly three decades at the U.S. Department of Justice. She began her career in 1989 as an assistant U.S. attorney at the Northern District of Georgia, an office covering 46 counties including Atlanta. In 2010, President Barack Obama appointed her to lead that office, making her the first woman to hold the position.
Obama later named Yates deputy U.S. attorney general in 2015, the second-highest-ranking position at the Justice Department. She received bipartisan support for the role. During that tenure, she wrote a widely noted memo directing federal prosecutors to focus on individual wrongdoers in corporate cases, a policy response to the 2008 financial crisis, during which corporations paid fines but many executives faced no prosecution.
In January 2017, Yates served as acting U.S. attorney general for ten days before President Donald Trump fired her. Her dismissal followed her refusal to defend Trump’s executive order banning travelers from several predominantly Muslim countries. The White House said at the time that Yates had “betrayed the Department of Justice by refusing to enforce a legal order designed to protect the citizens of the United States,” and described her as “weak on borders and very weak on illegal immigration.”
After her firing, Yates wrote an opinion piece in The New York Times in July 2017. She argued that Trump was “attempting to dismantle the rule of law, destroy the time-honored independence of the Justice Department, and undermine the career men and women who are devoted to seeking justice day in and day out, regardless of which political party is in power.” She also warned that “if we are not careful, when we wake up from the Trump presidency, our justice system may be broken beyond recognition.”
Yates currently works as a partner at the law firm King & Spalding.
Prior Experience Investigating Sexual Misconduct
Yates has direct experience leading investigations into sexual misconduct. In 2022, she headed an independent probe into U.S. Soccer that produced a damning report on widespread abuse within the league.
“Our investigation over the past year has revealed a league in which abuse was systematic,” Yates said at the time. “Verbal and emotional abuse and sexual misconduct occurred at multiple teams, was perpetrated by several coaches and affected many players.” U.S. Soccer described the findings as “heartbreaking and deeply troubling” and pledged to address the report’s recommendations. U.S. Soccer President Cindy Parlow Cone called the abuse “inexcusable” and said it had “no place on any playing field, in any training facility or workplace.”
Cornell said it has asked Yates and her team to examine the university’s overall approach to preventing and responding to sexual misconduct, identify areas of strength and weakness, and recommend changes to improve campus safety. The university also committed to sharing the review’s findings and any recommendations with the broader Cornell community. Yates did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
