The Background
Cornell University has officially brought in Sally Yates to conduct an independent review of how the institution handles sexual assault allegations. This move follows massive scrutiny regarding an alleged gang rape involving members of the Chi Phi fraternity back in October 2024. Yates and her firm, King & Spalding, will have full access to internal documents, including disciplinary hearing records, oversight files for Greek organizations, and all correspondence with law enforcement.
Who is Sally Yates?
Yates has a long track record in the legal world, spending 27 years at the Justice Department where she focused on white-collar fraud and public corruption. You might recognize her name from the 2017 headlines: she served as acting attorney general for only 10 days before President Donald Trump fired her for refusing to defend his executive order on travel and refugee admissions. Later that year, she became a central figure in the Russia investigation after warning White House Counsel Don McGahn that Michael Flynn had misled the administration and was potentially vulnerable to blackmail.
She’s no stranger to high-stakes investigations. In 2021, the U.S. Soccer Federation tapped her to look into the National Women's Soccer League. Her final report exposed systemic emotional and verbal abuse, leading to a major push for stricter accountability measures.
Why it matters
This appointment is highkey a major development in an already chaotic situation. Cornell is currently facing a lawsuit from an alleged victim that has brought national attention to the case. Yates' work will run parallel to an active criminal investigation recently launched by New York Attorney General Letitia James. While James is focusing on the specifics of the criminal case, Yates is tasked with evaluating Cornell’s broader policies on sexual assault and dating violence to see if the school actually followed its own rules. The plot thickens as the university attempts to address claims that they failed to properly manage these allegations from the start.
