New York Lawsuit Revives West Point Assault Case Tied To Cornell, Columbia Student, AP Reports

WEST POINT, NY — A New York lawsuit is drawing renewed attention to a federal assault case involving a former West Point cadet who later studied at Cornell University and Columbia University.

According to court records and the lawsuit, Caleb Suh pleaded guilty in June in Manhattan federal court to assaulting his then-girlfriend in March 2022, while both were at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

The Associated Press reported that the woman, identified in the civil case as Jane Doe, alleges Suh drugged her in her barracks room, administered abortion pills against her will, and caused a miscarriage.

Prosecutors said in court that she was 19 and in her second year at the academy at the time. The lawsuit says she wanted to have the baby, while Suh later told the judge he impersonated her to open an online pharmacy account, ordered abortion medications, got Xanax from a friend to use as a sedative, and gave her what she believed was a prenatal protein shake.

According to the lawsuit, Suh left her alone after she woke up bleeding and ignored her attempts to contact him. The woman called 911 and was hospitalized. While she was being treated, Suh went back to the online pharmacy's website to post questions about whether doctors might detect the pills, according to the lawsuit.

"She's suffered a life-changing event that she is still dealing with and will be dealing with for the rest of her life," her lawyer, Russell Kornblith, told the AP's Jennifer Peltz by phone Monday.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages. Suh, who is awaiting sentencing, told the court in June that he was "deeply and immeasurably sorry for my actions and the pain that I have caused."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.