Cornell Says Alleged Gang Rape Punishments Were Not Minimal

Cornell University says the students disciplined over the alleged 2024 Chi Phi gang rape faced far more than essay duty ... revealing some were expelled or suspended following its investigation.

A Cornell spokesperson tells TMZ ... the school conducted a months-long Title IX probe, using temporary suspensions and other restrictions while the allegations were investigated.

The case then went before a panel of "trained faculty and staff," which heard evidence over several days and gave both the accuser and respondents a chance to testify.

Cornell says the panel ultimately handed down a range of sanctions, including expulsions and suspensions ... and insists none of the accused students were allowed to write essays as the sole consequence.

The statement ended ... "Any suggestion that the university did not impose consequential punishments for those involved is false. A continuation of the false narrative that there were minimal consequences in this case is irresponsible, will make survivors feel less safe and supported, and will perpetuate the underreporting of sexual assault."

That directly pushes back on the woman's lawsuit, which claims the men were given an opportunity to mitigate their conduct by submitting essays to Cornell.

The university also says the Chi Phi chapter was closed in 2024 and remains barred from campus.

As TMZ previously reported, the Tompkins County District Attorney reopened the criminal case after the lawsuit presented what he called a "dramatically different" account of the alleged assault. The D.A. plans to present the case to a grand jury with the woman's cooperation.

The lawsuit claims seven Chi Phi members drugged the woman with ketamine and raped her while she was unconscious ... with one allegedly summoning others upstairs in a frat Snapchat chat by writing there was "free p***y."