Two more of the accused Cornell 7 join effort to remove Letitia James from leading investigation

Two more of the seven Cornell fraternity members accused of sexually assaulting a student have joined an effort to remove Letitia James from leading an investigation into the woman's allegations. 

There are now four of the accused on a co-defendant's court petition seeking her removal over social media posts James made prior to her involvement, but that comes up short the full seven a judge had said were needed for him to move on the request, NBC News reported. 

Earlier this month, Hochul took the case away from a local prosecutor who declined to bring criminal charges in 2024 and handed it to James as a special prosecutor. After being appointed to the case, James posted on X and Facebook comments that Miltenberg says reveal she is biased. 

“What this young woman has been forced to endure is horrific and unacceptable,” James posted to X and Facebook on Sept. 28, linking to a news article about the lawsuit. 

“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," James continued. 

On Oct. 7, attorneys Andrew T. Miltenberg and Stuart Bernstein filed a petition on behalf of one of the men accused in the case that alleged James had displayed a "prejudice" in the case and asked that James be removed as special prosecutor. 

A New York judge last month appeared skeptical that James would be impartial in the course of an investigation, but he stopped short of removing James, questioning if he had the authority to do so unless all the accused men joined the petition seeking her removal. He gave the lawyers until Thursday to get them to join. 

Kaitlin Vigars, an assistant New York attorney general who is representing Hochul and James in the matter, argued that it's premature for the attorneys to argue that James has shown bias. 

Citing recent legal precedent, Vigars said Hochul had legal authority to appoint a special prosecutor. She also noted that James is only in the preliminary stages of the investigation into the allegations. If there is an indictment, Vigars argued, those charged would then have an opportunity to argue James has prejudice in the case.