希瑟·霍林斯沃思 康奈尔大学对一起涉嫌兄弟会宿舍轮奸事件的处理方式正引发人们对一项历经数十年的联邦民权法如何塑造高校处理校园性侵案件的质疑。
HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH Cornell University’s handling of an alleged fraternity house gang rape is raising questions about how a decades-old federal civil rights law shapes colleges’ treatment of campus sexual assault.
人们对《教育修正案第九条》（Title IX）的关注，源于一名仅被称作简·多伊（Jane Doe）的女性上月对康奈尔大学及七名兄弟会成员提起诉讼。
The focus on Title IX, which prohibits sexual discrimination in education, comes after a woman identified only as Jane Doe filed a lawsuit last month against Cornell and seven fraternity members.
她称，2024年10月，在被施压吸食快速起效的镇静剂氯胺酮（ketamine）、吸食大麻和饮酒后，她在位于 Chi Phi 兄弟会宿舍的房屋内遭到性侵。被指控的七名男子均否认她的指控，要么称性行为是自愿的，要么称他们根本未参与其中。
She said she was assaulted at the Chi Phi fraternity house in October 2024 after being pressured into snorting the fast-acting sedative ketamine, smoking marijuana and drinking alcohol. The accused men have all denied her allegations, either saying the sexual activity was consensual or they weren’t involved.
《教育修正案第九条》在其54年的大部分时间里，最广为人知的作用是为女运动员打开大门。但奥巴马总统政府在2011年发布的指导方针明确指出，它也保护那些称自己遭到性侵或骚扰的人。
Title IX was best known for most of its 54 years for opening doors for female athletes. But guidance issued in 2011 under President Barack Obama’s administration made clear it also protects people who say they were sexually assaulted or harassed.
尽管随着不同总统政府的更迭，相关规定也发生了变化，但 Title IX 程序的初衷是帮助高校决定如何处理涉事人员，无论他们是否面临刑事或其他法律后果。
The rules have changed with new presidential administrations, but Title IX proceedings are intended to help colleges decide how to discipline the people involved, regardless of whether they face criminal or other legal repercussions.
性侵案既可以在刑事法庭审理，也可以通过高校运行的 Title IX 纪律程序同时处理。
A sexual assault case can be handled in criminal court and through the campus-run Title IX disciplinary process at the same time.
理论上，刑事诉讼可能导致监禁，而 Title IX 案件可能导致开除。
In theory, the criminal proceeding could lead to prison time and the Title IX case to expulsion.
但德保罗大学社区心理学教授梅根·格雷森（Megan Greeson）表示，实际上，在这两套系统中，严重后果都很少见。她是一项涉及288,066起案件研究综述的作者之一，该研究发现，约20%被报警的案件会被起诉，其中仅8%最终导致定罪。
In reality, serious consequences are rare in either system, said Megan Greeson, a professor of community psychology at DePaul University. She was among the authors of a review of studies involving 288,066 cases that found around 20% of those reported to police are prosecuted and 8% lead to convictions.
简·多伊也未能例外。就在她向校园警方提供首次实质性陈述几天之后，纽约州上州地区的县检察官决定不对她的案件提起公诉。
Jane Doe was no exception. Days after she gave her first substantial interviews to campus police, the county district attorney in upstate New York decided not to prosecute.
在那之后很长一段时间里，简·多伊（Jane Doe）仍然认为这起刑事调查仍在继续。她的律师托马斯·朱弗拉（Thomas Giuffra）表示，她被“误导”了。
Long after that, Jane Doe believed the criminal investigation was ongoing . Her attorney, Thomas Giuffra, said she was “misled.”
她的案例反映了人们对这种“双轨制”（即同时进行刑事调查和校内纪律处分的制度）的普遍不满。格里斯森（Greeson）说：“人们经常问：‘你们说有两条不同的调查途径，这是什么意思？’”从表面上看，根据《第九条》（Title IX）进行的调查与警方调查非常相似：证人会被询问，被告也会聘请律师。但由于这一过程要求极高，许多受害者最终选择放弃诉讼，或者选择非正式的解决方式——比如要求被告不要与投诉者同班上课，或者要求被告转学；而这些处理方式往往不会在被告的档案中留下任何记录。
Her case illustrates a common complaint with the dual-track system. Greeson said she often hears: “What do you mean there’s two different investigations?”On the surface, Title IX investigations look a lot like police investigations. Witnesses are interviewed, and the accused often hire attorneys. The process is so demanding that many victims drop their case or choose to go an informal route , in which the accused might be asked not to take classes with the accuser, or to switch universities — often with no mark on their record.
当案件进入听证阶段时，学校判定学生是否有责任的标准远低于司法系统所要求的“排除合理怀疑”的标准。《第九条》规定，只要证据表明指控更有可能成立，学校就必须认定相关学生有责任。
When cases proceed to a hearing, schools have a lower bar for determining culpability than the justice system’s standard of beyond a reasonable doubt. Title IX requires schools to find an accused student responsible if the evidence shows the allegations are more likely true than not.
除了开除学籍外，可能的处罚还包括停学、取消奖学金或暂缓发放学位。如果学校认定学生有责任，这一结论会被记录在学生的成绩单上，从而影响他们进入研究生院或获得某些行业从业资格的可能性。
Beyond expulsions, consequences can include suspensions, loss of scholarships or withholding of a degree. A culpability finding can be noted on transcripts, which can make it difficult to get into graduate school or to obtain a state license in certain fields.
在唐纳德·特朗普总统任内，相关法规缩小了性骚扰的定义范围，导致一些大学（包括康奈尔大学）收到的投诉数量减少。
At some universities, including Cornell, Title IX offices handled fewer complaints after regulations narrowed the definition of sexual harassment during President Donald Trump’s first term.
批评者认为这些新规定阻碍了学生举报虐待行为；那些选择举报的学生还必须面对由施虐者指定的人员进行的公开听证和交叉询问。
Critics argued the rules discouraged students from coming forward with abuse allegations. Those who did faced a live hearing and cross-examination by a person of their alleged attacker’s choosing.
乔·拜登政府对这些规定进行了全面修订，扩大了被视为性骚扰的行为范围。2024年最终确定的法规还明确指出，《第九条》同样保护LGBTQ+群体学生的权益，并将公开听证程序设为可选环节。
Former President Joe Biden’s administration overhauled the rules to expand the type of behavior that’s considered sexual harassment. Rules finalized in 2024 also provided recognition that Title IX protects LGBTQ+ students and made live hearings optional.
2025年1月初，肯塔基州的一名联邦法官推翻了拜登推行的相关法规变更。随后，特朗普政府将这些法规恢复到了2020年的版本，这一变更已于上个月正式生效。
A federal judge in Kentucky overturned Biden’s changes in early January 2025. Trump’s current administration subsequently reverted to the 2020 rules in a change that became official last month .
随着相关法规的不断变化，康奈尔大学收到的关于性骚扰的投诉数量也发生了波动：2019年时投诉数量为205起，2020年降至98起，2024年又回升至166起。
Cornell’s Title IX complaints fluctuated as the regulations changed, falling from 205 in 2019 to 98 in 2020 before rising to 166 in 2024.
美国教育部的民权办公室过去在处理校园性暴力事件时曾发挥重要作用；在奥巴马和拜登执政期间，该部门会严厉追究那些未能妥善处理学生性骚扰投诉的学校的责任。然而自特朗普重新执政以来，相关调查的力度明显减弱了。
Additionally, the Education Department ’s Office for Civil Rights used to serve as a powerful enforcer in cases of campus sexual violence. Under Obama and Biden, it brought the weight of the government against schools that mishandled sexual assault complaints involving students. But investigations have dwindled since Trump returned to office.
“在现任政府执行《第九条》（Title IX）法规的方式下，学生能够获得问责或支持的途径越来越少，”致力于解决校园性暴力问题的组织“Know Your IX”的负责人艾玛·格拉索·莱文（Emma Grasso Levine）表示。
“There’s become fewer and fewer avenues for accountability and support that students are able to access with the way the current administration is enforcing or really choosing not to enforce Title IX,” said Emma Grasso Levine, the manager of Know Your IX, which works to address campus sexual violence.
这起事件始于事件发生约三周后，当时受害者“简·多伊”（Jane Doe）向校园警察报案。同一天，康奈尔大学兄弟会的相关负责人也联系了学校的《第九条》法规执行部门。涉事兄弟会的活动场所立即被暂停，并最终被永久关闭。
It started about three weeks after the alleged assault, when Jane Doe went to campus police. That same day, the head of Cornell’s fraternities contacted the school’s Title IX office. The Chi Phi fraternity house was immediately suspended and later closed for good.
根据法庭记录（这些记录是在其中一名被告学生对康奈尔大学提起诉讼后提交的），受害者“简·多伊”随后与《第九条》法规执行部门及校园警察进行了两次会面。
The following week, Jane Doe met twice with Title IX and campus police investigators, according to court records filed after one of the accused students sued Cornell over his punishment.
调查人员最终对32名证人进行了询问，并收集了包括社交媒体信息在内的各种证据。整个调查过程持续了12天，最终在2025年5月举行了纪律听证会。
Investigators ultimately conducted 50 interviews with 32 witnesses and gathered evidence that included social media messages. The process led to a disciplinary hearing that stretched over 12 days in May 2025.
尽管这起涉嫌集体强奸的事件发生在拜登推行的法规生效的短暂期间内，但由于法院颁布的禁令导致这些法规在包括康奈尔大学在内的数百所高校未能真正生效，因此受害者“简·多伊”仍不得不面对正式的听证程序。
Although the alleged gang rape happened during the brief time Biden’s versions of the rules were in place, Jane Doe faced a live hearing because an injunction had stalled them from going into effect at hundreds of colleges, including Cornell.
至少有一名被指控的学生对整个处理过程感到不满。根据这名学生的诉讼，有一次，听证小组成员在开车途中通过 Zoom 听取了证人的证词，整个过程持续了 45 分钟；这名学生认为这种行为干扰了他的辩护工作，从而损害了他的合法权益。
At least one accused student wasn’t happy with the process. At one point, a hearing panel member listened to testimony over Zoom while driving for 45 minutes, according to the accused student’s lawsuit. The student alleged it was a distraction that hurt his defense.
最终，一些被指控的学生被停学或开除。其中两人被要求撰写反思文章作为处罚措施的一部分。
Ultimately, some of the accused students were suspended or expelled. Two were asked to write reflection essays as part of their punishments.
这些处理结果非常罕见。2018 年至 2024 年间，康奈尔大学共收到了 1,216 起与《第九条》（Title IX）相关的投诉，但只有 4% 的投诉最终认定相关学生负有责任；仅有 14 起案件导致了学生的停学或开除，7 起案件仅导致了书面警告等较轻的处罚。
Those were unusual outcomes. From 2018 to 2024, 1,216 Title IX complaints were reported to Cornell, with just 4% resulting in a finding that one of the accused was responsible. Only 14 cases led to suspensions and seven to expulsions or dismissals. Lighter consequences, such as written reprimands, were more typical.
在人们要求康奈尔大学校长迈克尔·科特利科夫（Michael Kotlikoff）因调查处理不当而辞职的呼声中，该校于周二宣布将暂停兄弟会活动，并将允许纽约州警方参与调查校园内的性犯罪案件。
Amid calls for Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff to resign over the handling of the investigation , the school announced Tuesday that it was suspending parties at fraternity houses and will give New York State Police a role in investigating sex crimes on campus.
科特利科夫还表示，将在学校的民权办公室增设一名案件协调员，以帮助那些举报性不当行为的学生更好地了解相关处理流程。同时，学校也在对自身处理性骚扰投诉的方式进行全面审查。
Kotlikoff also committed to adding a case manager to the school’s Office of Civil Rights to help those who report sexual misconduct navigate the process. A review of Cornell’s handling of sexual assault claims also is underway.
科特利科夫在早前的一段道歉视频中表示：“我认为，作为管理层和整个校园社区，我们必须做得更好。”
“I believe,” Kotlikoff said in an earlier apologetic video , “we as an administration and we as a community must do better.”