Four men named in a former Cornell University student’s gang rape lawsuit are joining their co-defendant’s effort to stop New York’s attorney general from leading the reopened criminal investigation into the allegations, court filings viewed by Global News revealed on Thursday.

The men were added to an existing court petition filed by a co-defendant seeking Attorney General Letitia James’ removal from the case because of an X post she made in support of the alleged victim before she was appointed by New York Governor Kathy Hochul to oversee legal proceedings.

The post from James, which lawyers for the defendants cite in the document, reads, “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.”

The filing argues that James’ statement means she can not remain neutral in investigating the matter and that there is a “substantial likelihood” of prejudice if she remains involved in the case “in any capacity.”

State lawyers said that Hochul appointed James because of a proven track record of handling sensitive cases subject to widespread and persistent media attention, the Associated Press reported.

On Oct. 8, having initially declined to speak on her social media posts, James said her comments were meant to “demonstrate empathy, and what we need now more than ever in our body politic is more empathy,” the U.S. news agency added.

The defendants’ request to remove her comes a day after James appointed Jacqueline Kelly, a former federal prosecutor who oversaw a sex crimes case against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, as outside counsel for the investigation.

Kelly and a team of lawyers and experts will be responsible for gathering evidence, witness interviews and other investigative steps in the Cornell gang rape case and will report to James.

In a statement on Wednesday, James said she is confident that Kelly “will lead a fair and comprehensive investigation,” and described her as a “seasoned prosecutor.”

Andrew Miltenberg, a lawyer for the man spearheading the removal effort, said in a court filing that Kelly’s appointment “changes the face of the investigation” but “does not establish any change in ultimate authority,” according to the AP.

A judge last week heard arguments for one of the accused men’s requests to remove the attorney general from the case but refused to rule without knowing if the six remaining suspects would back their co-defendants’ efforts to oust James. He gave the man’s lawyers until Thursday to get the remaining men to sign on.

Four agreed to join, including one whose lawyers had previously filed court papers seeking to have James removed. The two others didn’t have lawyers and did not respond, court filings said.

The request was filed in response to a lawsuit brought in September by a former Cornell student identified in court papers as Jane Doe, who alleges that she was gang raped for hours by several members of a fraternity at an on-campus party in 2024.

The woman accused some of the men of pressuring her into using ketamine and marijuana after she had already consumed alcohol, which she claims rendered her incapable of consenting to sex.

Not all of the men named in the lawsuit were accused of rape.

Hochul appointed James as a special prosecutor overseeing the investigation last month, after the local district attorney refused to lay charges in 2024 but agreed to reopen the investigation after the former student filed their lawsuit.

The re-opening of the investigation led to student protests over the university’s handling of the alleged gang rape and sexual assault on campus more broadly. The university banned parties and other social events held at fraternity houses the for the rest of the academic year and gave the New York State Police a role in investigating sex crimes on campus.

— with files from the Associated Press