Cornell Concluded Defendant Newell Had Sex with Jane Doe Without Consent

Cornell Sexual Assault Case University Expelled Newell for Nonconsensual Sex Published October 9, 2026 9:39 AM PDT The Cornell University disciplinary committee expelled Jonathan Newell, a defendant in Jane Doe's civil lawsuit, because he had sex with her without her consent ... Doe's lawyer tells TMZ. Attorney Thomas Giuffra tells TMZ ... "We believe that [the text messages TMZ posted] were part of the Title IX process which led to Mr. Newell's expulsion after twelve days of evidentiary hearings and extensive documentary evidence. It is undisputed that the Hearing Panel found that Mr. Newell violated Ms. Doe's bodily safety in commencing intercourse without her consent." Someone who has reviewed the hearing panel's decision tells TMZ the panel found Newell did not have "affirmative consent," meaning there was not express consent to engage in sex. Title IX says "silence or lack of resistance in and of itself does not demonstrate consent." Although Jane Doe says in her early texts her initial encounter with Newell and Matthew Ingalls was consensual, her lawsuit she says things changed when Ingalls went to take a nap. She says Newell then began reaching for her vagina multiple times, "and each time [Doe] pushed his hand away." She says another man entered the room, grabbed her away from Newell and began kissing her while Newell groped her vagina. She claims the two men "placed [her] on a bed and the two men began having sex with [her], initiating another assault, all without [her] consent." Giuffra says "The Hearing Panel also found Mr. Newell chose to sexualize and broadcast Ms. Doe's vulnerability and invite further abuse which caused at least three men unknown to Ms. Doe -- and likely more -- to sexually abuse her." The "broadcast" he's referring to is Newell posting "Free p***y" on the frat's Snapchat during the alleged sexual assault. He also posted a photo of Doe on the bed. TMZ broke the story ... Doe and Newell exchanged friendly texts for 2 weeks after the Oct. 19 incident. In one message she seemed to rationalize what happened, telling him ... "i don't think we should feel any shame for the part. our body our choice asf." It's unclear when Doe found out about Newell's Snap messages, but on Nov. 3 she texted him, "let's be clear that 90% of what happened that night was not consensual. i was given more key than i can remember and i know that i told u i felt uncomfortable and i didn't know anyone in the room." Giuffra says the Panel expelled Newell from Cornell. And Giuffra is responding to the stories posted on TMZ Thursday, where Jane Doe texted both Ingalls and Newell in the days following the alleged sexual assault, where she was seemingly ok with the sexual encounters. Giuffra says "This is a well-known phenomenon, which is widely reported in medical and psychological literature. Most rape survivors do not immediately identify what happened to them as rape." Giuffra adds, "When the perpetrator is a romantic partner or friend, victims frequently second-guess their own perception."