'Cornell 7' Figure Fights Back Against 'Improper' Appointment of Letitia James with Court Move
One of the Cornell 7 has filed a special legal maneuver demanding that New York Attorney General Letitia James be removed as special prosecutor in the case as per the bias she’s shown toward Jane Doe.
Gillio Lopes, one of seven current and former Cornell University students accused of gang-raping a young woman identified only as Jane Doe in 2024, filed a petition in court Wednesday questioning James’ impartiality based on remarks she posted to social media after the case went viral, according to The New York Times.
On Sept. 28, three days before New York Gov. Kathy Hochul officially appointed James as special prosecutor in the case, the New York Attorney General published a stunning post in support of Jane Doe through her official account on the social media platform X.
“What this young woman has been forced to endure is horrific and unacceptable,” James’ post on X read. “I’m holding her in my heart and in my prayers. To her, and to all survivors: you’re not alone. We stand with you.”
What this young woman has been forced to endure is horrific and unacceptable. I’m holding her in my heart and in my prayers.
To her, and to all survivors: you’re not alone. We stand with you.
https://t.co/az4ViQwgy1— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) September 28, 2026
While in court on Wednesday, Lopes’ lawyers demanded James be removed and replaced with someone “who is free from actual or perceived conflicts of interest or bias,” including bias against his client.
“By describing what Doe ‘has been forced to endure’ and identifying her with ‘survivors,’ Attorney General James publicly characterized the alleged experience as an event that had occurred, before she was entrusted with the reopened criminal investigation,” they added.
According to NBC News, the actual filing said James shouldn’t be linked to the case because she’s “unequivocally demonstrated a bias and presumption of guilt against the defendants named in the Civil Case.” The filing also called James’ appointment “improper.”
Stephen Gillers, a professor of legal ethics at New York University’s law school, appeared to give credence to the lawyers’ arguments, telling the Times that James’ post had “skirted around the limitation of what she can say and do as a prosecutor.”
“I would have liked more care for a high-profile case like this,” he continued.
Lopes’ legal team disputed James’ standing in the case by specifically relying on an Article 78 challenge, which is a special legal proceeding in New York State Supreme Court used to review and challenge controversial decisions and actions by state officials.
SCOOP🚨 CORNELL SEVEN: Gillio Lopes, one of the seven men accused in Jane Doe’s civil lawsuit, has filed an Article 78 challenge looking to REMOVE NY Attorney General Letitia James as special prosecutor in the criminal investigation. His attorneys argue James showed bias toward Jane Doe in a Sept. 28 social media post, three days before Gov. Hochul appointed her to lead the reopened criminal investigation. Lopes wants the appointment overturned and a different prosecutor assigned. A judge has not yet ruled. More details via @lamag shortly.
— Lauren Conlin (@conlin_lauren) October 8, 2026
Stuart Bernstein, identified by NBC News as one of Lopes’ attorneys, told the network that James’ social media posts don’t “instill confidence.”
“As Governor Hochul has said, the public needs confidence in the individual leading this investigation,” he stressed. “AG James, based upon her very public statements validating Jane Doe, certainly doesn’t instill confidence in a fair investigation.”
Pressed by NBC News for a comment, James’ office declined to say anything. Meanwhile, Hochul’s office directed reporters to previous comments about James that she’d made a week earlier.
“I have every confidence in our Attorney General to do what she has always done: look at the facts, examine the record and draw the proper conclusions,” Hochul said the prior week. “That’s exactly what’s going to happen in this case.”
Critics have pushed back hard by pointing to the “damning evidence” surrounding James’ alleged rampant corruption. Critics have likewise accused both Hochul and James of politicizing the case ahead of the midterm elections.
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