New York City
New York Appoints Federally Investigated AG To Investigate How Justice Gets Denied
By BSN Staff, . BSN Network. Satire.
ALBANY, N.Y. -- Governor Kathy Hochul announced this week that New York Attorney General Letitia James will serve as special prosecutor in the Cornell University alleged rape case, tasked with answering the governor's central question: how was this woman denied justice?
James is currently under federal criminal investigation.
The appointment, which Hochul described as a commitment to accountability, places the state's highest law enforcement officer in the unusual position of investigating a system's failure to protect a victim while simultaneously being investigated by a separate system for her own conduct. Legal scholars are calling it ambitious. Several others used the word "something."
"Attorney General James has the independence and the integrity to get to the bottom of this," Hochul said at a press conference, speaking with the specific confidence of someone who checked exactly one box before making a call.
The Cornell case centers on allegations that university administrators were aware of a sexual assault complaint and failed to act, leaving the alleged victim without recourse for months. Hochul said the appointment of a special prosecutor was necessary because the situation demanded someone outside the normal chain of accountability.
She selected someone currently inside a federal accountability chain.
James's office confirmed she would accept the role, issuing a statement that she takes the matter "extremely seriously" and that no institution is above the law. The statement did not include a section on federal investigations, which is fine, it was already quite long.
Former Manhattan prosecutor David Crane said the optics were, quote, "a choice," adding that the effectiveness of a special prosecutor depends heavily on the public's confidence in her independence. He then asked if anyone wanted to get lunch and left before the follow-up question.
Students at Cornell expressed a range of reactions. Meredith Kaplan, a junior who has followed the case since fall, said she was relieved someone was finally taking it seriously. When told who had been appointed, she asked the reporter to repeat it. When it was repeated, she said "okay" in the tone of someone who has decided to finish their degree and move to another state.
Hochul, for her part, appeared unbothered by the apparent irony, which is either a sign of genuine confidence in James or a sign that she has staffed her entire communications operation with people too polite to say anything directly.
James is expected to begin the investigation immediately, which gives her the rare distinction of being both a prosecutor and a case study in the same fiscal quarter.
In a related development, the Cornell administration released a three-page statement affirming its commitment to student safety. It was formatted in 11-point Times New Roman and will not result in anything.
The story we are making fun of: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cornell-university-case-letitia-james-special-prosecutor/