A judge seals Cornell case files after a Marine who shares a name with one of the accused men and his family face threats over a wrong address

A New York judge has just stepped in to seal several documents in a lawsuit involving sexual assault allegations at Cornell University. According to The Washington Post, Judge Phaedra F. Perry-Bond of the New York Supreme Court in New York County made the decision after it became clear that the address of a US Marine, who happens to share the same name as one of the defendants, was mistakenly included in the public court files. 

The New York Times reported that the plaintiff’s lawyer included the wrong address for a man named Matthew Ingalls, who was one of seven men accused of assault. All of the accused deny wrongdoing. Unfortunately, that address belonged to the family of a Marine sergeant, who has no connection to Cornell. On September 26, the mother of the innocent Marine was served with the court papers. Shortly after, the family reportedly began receiving violent death threats via social media, text messages, and phone calls. 

The outlet noted that the family even had garbage thrown on their lawn as online users who believed they were targeting the accused party directed their rage at the wrong people. Once the mistake was identified, the Post noted that Thomas P. Giuffra, Jane Doe’s lawyer, has since filed a list of defendants with corrected addresses. However, the initial filing with the wrong information was still publicly accessible.

The judge called out the online vigilantism

NYT noted that the impact on the family has been severe. The Marine’s mother, who works as a paralegal, has struggled to work or sleep since the threats began. According to WSTM, the Marine filed a motion on October 6 asking the court to remove his address from the proceedings. He explained that at the time the alleged incident occurred at Cornell, he was stationed in North Carolina and had never even been to the university.

According to The Washington Post, Judge Perry-Bond did not hold back in her ruling in her criticism of those responsible for the harassment. “Certain ‘vigilantes’ have used an erroneous address to inundate a former Marine and his family with threats, simply because of a name shared with a defendant in the case,” she wrote. “That behavior must cease immediately, is completely unacceptable, and provides more than ample cause to seal certain documents on this court’s docket.”

Per WSTM, the judge also emphasized the dangers of people attempting to bypass the legal system through online intimidation. She described the harassment as “brash, reckless and ultimately dangerous internet vigilantism.” In her official order, she stated, “Everyone involved, be it the public, parties or their attorneys, needs to do their part in bringing the temperature down before someone gets hurt.”

According to The Washington Post, John Manly, an attorney representing the Marine’s family, noted that the family is considering legal action against those who harassed them, including the possibility of seeking criminal charges. Manly had a clear message for the aggressors: “If you are sending threatening messages, we will find you and go after you.”

The New York Times noted that Giuffra issued a statement apologizing for the error, explaining that his team had identified a man of the same age and name as the accused. “We are very sorry that an error was made under these circumstances and apologize to this gentleman and his family,” he said.

The outlet further noted that this case is part of a larger, troubling trend where online users seize on unverified information to target individuals. Experts point out that these situations often leave innocent people with lasting trauma or damage to their professional lives. 

Whitney Phillips, an associate professor at the University of Oregon, told the NYT that while some might believe they have good intentions, the risks are always high. “You just see it again and again and again: People who have nothing to do with the case now suddenly have their lives upended,” she said. “This all doesn’t seem like a very big deal until it happens to you or your mother.”

NYT noted that the Ingalls mistaken identity wasn’t the first. A consulting firm in Texas was reportedly targeted by angry emails and social media backlash after users incorrectly linked the business to another accused man, Gillio Lopes. The firm’s CEO, Zaira Vidrio, says she never hired him, and noted that she lacked the resources to combat the misinformation. On Instagram, she said, “We don’t have the resources. I do not have a big following.”

Per the NYT, Manly called out what he saw as a double standard when Giuffra went on CNN to talk about Jane Doe getting doxxed and swatted. He asked, “Well, what about the innocent person?”

As the Marine’s mother noted, “My son is a good man. He’s a good Marine. And he didn’t deserve any of this.”