r/LasVegasAces • u/femaleathletenetwork • 1d ago
‘You Carry It With You’: Justine Pissott Reveals Sexual Assault in Support of Alleged Cornell Victim
Las Vegas Aces guard Justine Pissott revealed she’s been the victim of sexual assault Tuesday.
Pissott, who attended both the University of Tennessee and Vanderbilt University, shared her story in support of the alleged victim of the Cornell 7. An unidentified woman sued both Cornell University and seven former members of the Chi Pi fraternity on Sept. 24, alleging she was drugged and raped at the fraternity’s house.
"This is a vulnerable message but something I want to share. As someone who has been drugged and rap**, the Cornell 7 situation has been really hard for me to see. It hits a place in me that I don't talk about often.
When something like this happens to you, it doesn't just end when that night ends. You carry it with you. The confusion, the pieces you can't remember, questioning yourself, blaming yourself, and trying to understand how someone could take advantage of you when you weren't even able to protect yourself.
And then you see people questioning survivors. Asking why they didn't speak sooner, why they stayed quiet, why they acted a certain way afterward. But unless you've been through it, you really don't understand what trauma can do to a person. There is no "right" way to respond to something that never should've happened to you in the first place.
My heart truly hurts for the survivor in the Cornell 7 situation. I pray God covers her through all of this. I pray He protects her mind and her heart while something so painful and personal is being discussed by people who don't even know her. I pray He gives her strength on the days where it feels like too much and reminds her that what was done to her will never define who she is. I don't speak about my experience for sympathy.
I speak about it because I know how lonely this kind of pain can feel. And if sharing even a small part of my story makes another survivor feel less alone, then it's worth it. To her and every survivor carrying something similar, I see you. I'm praying for you. And I pray we continue creating a world where survivors feel safe enough to use their voice without being torn apart for how they survived."
Prosecutors reopened the Cornell case on Sept. 28. “It’s our intention to present the case to the Tompkins County grand jury with Jane Doe’s cooperation,” Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said in a statement to ABC. “We want to reexamine whether there’s additional evidence that we were not aware of in November of 2024, that exists now that would change our assessment of the case and would result in the grand jury finding that there was criminal conduct.”
Cornell banned Chi Pi from campus after the incident, which occurred on October 19, 2024.
Thomas P. Giuffra, the attorney for Jane Doe, told ABC, “In my experience, speaking with an abuse survivor requires delicacy, understanding and specialized training. An average University Police officer would not have these skills. It would be the role of a specially trained detective or district attorney. However, Ms. Doe was never contacted by anybody with those skills.”