An Addendum to the Post about Cornell
Since posting on this last week, the news space has exploded with additional factual information and demands for investigations, prosecutions and firings. My initial plan was to update the investigative facts, but the story is unfolding too fast and “fast facts” are often compiled in haphazard ways. We need to be deliberative because the lives of Jane Doe and the named defendants are truly in harm’s way.
Meanwhile we can probably all agree that the “truth” of that night and thousands of others like it on other campuses is buried in a scrum of dope, drugs and alcohol. These substances obscure unconsented from voluntary contact. In some settings we don’t care. I can’t defend my DUI charges by claiming to be too drunk to know I shouldn’t drive. But here we have the question of what conduct was consensual when it seems all the participants were impaired. There are two relevant layers to consider. Was the substance use consensual? What effect should that have in deciding whether the sex was consensual.
While media outlets try to monitor Jane Doe and Cornell, the rest of the world really should focus on mitigating the risk to the other 19.6 million young Americans in college and grad schools. Here’s a new report from the Washington Post. The deadly drugs causing warnings at Cornell and other colleges. The article highlights what’s “cookin'” on 21st century campuses and suggests that some of these drugs can kill those who ingest at first use. It has been 40 years since Nancy Reagan implored us to “Just say No.” Instead, we have legalized marijuana and expanded the menu of drugs to a point that would take pages to describe.
Last week the Montgomery County district attorney charged 46 retail stores with selling THC illegally. Nearly 50 Montgomery County businesses face drug charges for selling illegal THC products, DA says .
When victims and perpetrators are both high when a crime is committed, sober judges and jurors sitting in courtrooms have a real challenge deciding between “consent” and “felony assault.”
Addendum 10/6/2026 Here’s a more thorough analysis than mine by a criminal defense lawyer who can see both sides of the story.