Judge rejects gag order request

On Friday, Judge Phaedra Perry-Bond rejected a request to impose a gag order in the civil case brought by a former Cornell University student alleging sexual assault at a fraternity house in two thousand twenty-four.

Judge calls request a distraction

Judge Perry-Bond called the gag order request a side show meant to muddy the waters and distract from the merits of the claims and defenses involved in the case.

“meant to muddy the waters and distract from the merits of the claims and defenses involved in this case”

First Amendment protects opinions

The judge ruled that expressing opinions on the case or reporting on how litigation has impacted clients cannot alone serve as a factual basis for limiting First Amendment rights.

“Expressing opinions on the case or reporting on how the litigation has impacted clients cannot alone serve as a factual basis for limiting an individual's First Amendment rights”

Isolated statements insufficient

While the judge agreed that lawyers should not claim certain parties spoliated evidence before discovery, those isolated statements alone are insufficient to show the serious prejudice required by precedent and the Constitution.

Judge urges cooperation on safety

Judge Perry-Bond encouraged attorneys to work together to prevent their clients from facing threats, harassment and doxing, given the notoriety of doxing related to this case.

The original allegations

A then-undergraduate student identified as Jane Doe complained to campus police in November two thousand twenty-four, three weeks after the alleged incident, that she had been sexually assaulted by a group of men at the…

Civil suit filed against seven men

Jane Doe filed a civil suit against seven men and Cornell University alleging she had been drugged and raped. The men denied all allegations. No criminal charges have been filed.

Cornell suspends fraternity events

This week, Cornell University President Michael Kotlikoff announced that all parties and social events at fraternity houses are suspended for the rest of the year while the university considers whether fraternity life can continue.