ils, lawyer says Based on that summary, Van Houten said he believed no crime had been committed, and that the woman's participation in drug use and sex was voluntary, conscious and consensual. That description differs sharply with what the woman told police and university investigators, and with what she alleged in a lawsuit filed against seven Chi Phi fraternity members, Cornell and others last month. Among other things, Giuffra said, the six-page report omitted the woman telling investigators, I can say with 100% confidence I was raped, that she was subjected to physical violence, and that a fraternity brother had sent a message to a group chat using a vulgar term to advertise that a woman's body was freely available. Last week, citing investigative records it obtained, The New York Times reported that a Cornell police investigator tried to get Van Houten's office to consider additional evidence in the weeks after the alleged rape, but was rebuffed. At first I thought these police were incompetent, Giuffra said. It sounds like they were doing the right thing. And they just got shut down. Giuffra said that while he and Jane Doe have received death threats, he has been heartened by an outpouring of support, including rallies and protests on the Cornell campus and more than 1,000 women who have emailed him to share anger, frustration, solidarity and stories of their own assaults. Speakers faulted fraternities, the university trustees and Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff, saying he and his administration have prioritized protecting the university's reputation over students' safety. News 4's Gilma Avalos with the latest. Students rally against sexual violence Some Cornell students staged a sit-in at a dining hall and vowed not to spend money on campus Wednesday to protest sexual violence and how the university has handled complaints, in the latest expression of outrage over an alleged 2024 gang rape at a fraternity house. A handwritten sign reading Justice for Jane Doe - the name under which the accuser is suing - was propped on an empty table in the dining hall in the afternoon. Some students sat around the room without eating, while others lunched. Another small group sat outside holding signs with messages such as we are Jane Doe. The demonstrations were meant to spotlight complaints that the university is slow to respond to reports of sexual assault while quick to protect its reputation. Among other demands, the groups want the university to retool disciplinary procedures for addressing complaints and expel or revoke the degrees of anyone involved in the alleged October 2024 sexual assault. Jane Doe, who was a student then, alleges that Chi Phi members plied her with alcohol and drugs and several sexually assaulted her. One man sent others a message inviting them to participate, according to a lawsuit she filed last month. Lawyers for two of the men have denied they participated in a sexual assault. Attempts by The Associated Press to reach the others or their representatives have been unsuccessful. Some of the men who underwent a university disciplinary hearing in 2024 told investigators that the sexual activity was consensual or said they were not involved. Man in lawsuit wants attorney general removed The woman went to Cornell police in November 2024, though no criminal charges resulted. In the wake of her lawsuit, Van Houten said he was reopening the investigation. Days later, Gov. Kathy Hochul took the case away from him and appointed the state's attorney general, Letitia James, as a special prosecutor. Giuffra applauded the move, saying he was troubled by Van Houten's plan for conducting the reopened investigation and didn't think he was up to the task. Giuffra said the district attorney wanted to take the case to a grand jury and have Jane Doe testify before the panel within two weeks. That timeline, leaving little time to review evidence or interview witnesses, suggested that Van Houten may have been trying to go take a dive and not really give it his best effort and not do any investigation, Giuffra said. James hasn't said how long her investigation might take, but she suggested it would take months. On Wednesday, one of the men named in Jane Doe's lawsuit filed a court petition seeking James' removal from the case, arguing she showed bias by posting on social media a few days before her appointment: What this young woman has been forced to endure is horrific and unacceptable. A spokesperson for James declined to comment. Cornell closed down the Chi Phi campus chapter in 2024 and says it expelled some students and suspended others after an investigation under the federal Title IX law. This week Cornell trustees brought in former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates to review how the school investigates sexual assault and sexual harassment, how the disciplinary process works, the campus police response and more. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul appointed state Attorney General Letitia James to take over as special prosecutor in the investigation into the alleged gang rape at Cornell University, explaining her dissatisfaction with the Tompkins County district attorney. NBC New York's Andrew Siff reports. ___ Sisak reported from New York.