Jane Doe Texted Roommate During Alleged Cornell Gang Rape, Court Documents Show

Newly released text messages indicate that the woman who accused seven Cornell University fraternity members of gang raping her at a 2019 party was texting her roommate during the alleged assault, a detail that has been raised by the defense to question her state of intoxication.

The accuser, identified in court documents as Jane Doe, claimed she was coerced into taking drugs and sexually assaulted by members of the now-defunct Chi Phi fraternity on October 19, 2019. In a civil lawsuit filed last month, she alleged the sexual assault lasted for approximately seven hours, from around 11 p.m. until 5:45 a.m. the following day.

However, text messages obtained by TMZ show Doe responding to her roommate at the Delta Delta Delta sorority at 3:05 a.m. Her roommate had asked, "You coming home tn [tonight]?" Doe replied, "idk," an abbreviation for "I don't know."

One of the accused fraternity members argues that this text message demonstrates Doe was able to read, process, and respond, indicating she was not as incapacitated by drugs and alcohol as she claims.

Later that morning, at approximately 11:15 a.m. on October 20, Doe's roommate posted a photo of their room on social media with the caption: "It was a good night when only one out of three of us made it back."

In a written statement to Cornell police, Doe stated she arrived at the fraternity house with an intoxication level she rated as "about a five out of 10." She reported consuming several shots of alcohol with sorority sisters and having a mixed drink at a bar in downtown Ithaca, New York.

She alleged that the night began with a threesome with defendants Matthew Ingalls and Jonathan Newell, but the situation escalated when more fraternity members entered the room. According to her statement, around 1:42 a.m., Newell allegedly posted in a fraternity Snapchat group that there was "free p***y" upstairs.

Mystery surrounding the events that followed includes Doe's own account that she felt "super isolated" and that "these men" did not view her as a person. She further stated in her written statement to police that she recalled two other men entering the room, kissing her, and that one of them engaged in another threesome with Doe and another man.

Doe confided in her written statement that she considered taking ketamine again to pass out, believing that if she lost consciousness, the men could be charged with rape. She stated that at approximately 2:30 a.m., fraternity group chat members inquired about the situation, with Ingalls reportedly replying, "Boys, come whip it out."

Doe described men snorting drugs off her body while she felt "extremely tired" and covered her face. She later stated that one man who lived in the bedroom entered and said, "OK we're shutting down whatever the f**k this is," after which the group dispersed.

She recounted being ushered upstairs by two men to what she believed was the fraternity president's office, where the three consumed ketamine. Doe reported feeling "extremely high" and eventually acceded to repeated sexual requests, which she interpreted as coercion, also believing the men should have recognized her level of intoxication due to her slurred speech.

The sexual encounter reportedly concluded around 5:45 a.m., after which Doe fell asleep in a room at the fraternity house.

Upon returning to her sorority house, Doe told her sisters she had taken "ketamine." Later that day, she learned that members of Chi Phi had allegedly bragged about an "eightsome" with her, making it apparent that the incident was widely known.

Following the alleged assault, Doe sought testing for sexually transmitted diseases at Cornell Health and informed her doctor she had contracted a urinary tract infection in a "traumatic fashion."

In subsequent text messages to Newell and Ingalls, Doe appeared to downplay the interaction. To Newell, she wrote, "At the end of the day none of the sexual stuff was illegal, and honestly i really liked being w u and matt." She added, "I don't think we should feel any shame for the part. our body our choice asf." In a separate message to Ingalls, she suggested jealousy was fueling public discussion and stated, "But also like everyone needs to grow up cause sexuality and sex and s**t is changing and stuff like this is going to become more common," before telling him, "I luv u king."

Her attorney, Thomas Giuffra, however, told the Daily Mail that these messages do not indicate consensual sexual intercourse. He argued that Doe exhibited "classic symptoms of delayed recognition," a phenomenon where survivors take time to fully comprehend the gravity of an assault.

Cornell University conducted a months-long investigation involving at least 12 hearings between January and May 2025. Ultimately, Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten decided not to file criminal charges against any of the seven men, all of whom deny any wrongdoing.

However, Ingalls and Newell were expelled from Cornell. Two other students received suspensions and disciplinary probation. A third individual, who had graduated by the time of the punishments, was barred from campus. The remaining two men were required to complete sexual harassment, social media use, and bystander intervention courses, along with writing reflection papers, according to the lawsuit.

Both of these men claimed they were in the room with Doe for only five minutes, though Doe alleged in her lawsuit that they snorted ketamine off her body.