WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
  • Trump criticized Hochul’s appointment of Letitia James as special prosecutor in the Cornell University rape case.
  • Trump called James corrupt and warned those facing her scrutiny “won’t get a fair shake.”
  • James said her office will review facts, gather evidence, interview witnesses and pursue prosecutions if warranted.
  • A local district attorney previously reviewed the alleged 2025 incident and declined to bring charges.

President Trump sharply criticized New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s decision to appoint New York Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor in the Cornell University rape case.

Trump warned that anyone facing scrutiny from James “won’t get a fair shake.”

Hochul, a Democrat, selected James to handle the matter after saying she lacked confidence in the district attorney.

Trump’s criticism came only hours after the governor tapped James for the role.

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The president delivered his remarks Friday while speaking to reporters on the South Lawn. He was traveling to Alabama when he weighed in on the appointment and James.

“Letitia James is a corrupt person,” Trump told reporters on the South Lawn en route to Alabama on Friday.

Trump then turned his attention to those who could fall under James’s scrutiny as the investigation proceeds. His assessment of their chances was blunt.

“I feel bad for whoever she’s looking at because they won’t get a fair shake,” he added.

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Trump and James have repeatedly battled in public, making her appointment another chapter in their long running feud.

James previously investigated and sued Trump, while Trump has repeatedly targeted her with sharp criticism.

Their conflict has also included state lawsuits challenging policies pursued by the Trump administration. James also moved to sue the Trump administration over fraud, adding to the extensive legal and political confrontation between them.

Hochul announced James’s appointment just hours before Trump made his comments.

The governor said she did not have confidence in the district attorney to manage the matter, leading her to put James in charge as special prosecutor.

James appeared with Hochul at a Friday press conference and said her office was prepared to take on the assignment.

She described a process centered on reviewing facts, collecting evidence, speaking with witnesses and considering possible prosecutions.

“I stand ready to lead a process guided by the facts and the law. In the coming months, my office will dutifully carry out the responsibilities the governor has conferred upon us in this executive order. We will review the facts, gather evidence, interview witnesses, and, if warranted, pursue prosecutions,” James said at a Friday press conference alongside Hochul.

The appointment marks the latest development in the investigation of an alleged gang rape at a Cornell University campus fraternity in 2025. The matter has already produced a lawsuit involving the university, a fraternity, a sorority and seven men.

The woman who brought the lawsuit was a sophomore at Cornell at the time of the alleged incident.

She sued Cornell University, the fraternity, her own sorority and seven men whom she says were involved in assaulting her.

Before Hochul assigned the case to James, a local district attorney had reviewed the matter. That district attorney ultimately declined to bring criminal charges after conducting the review.

According to a report by The New York Times, some of the men named in the woman’s lawsuit acknowledged having sexual contact with her.

Those men said the contact had been consensual, according to the report.

James now has the responsibilities granted through Hochul’s executive order and has said her office will determine whether prosecutions are warranted.

Trump, however, made clear that he does not trust his longtime political and legal adversary to provide fair treatment to those under examination.

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