Polymarket removed sexual assault case betting markets after media inquiries drew public scrutiny
A bet on whether any of the seven defendants named in a civil gang-rape lawsuit involving a former Cornell University student would face felony sex crime charges was available on Polymarket for nearly three weeks, according to the report. The market, which had accumulated over $451,000 and was set to close at the end of January, was removed from the platform shortly after a reporter reached out for comment, following days of public criticism on social media. Polymarket initially defended prediction markets as providing objective, data-driven insight into legal proceedings, but declined to comment further once the bet was taken down. Several other criminal case betting markets, including ones tied to ongoing manslaughter and rape proceedings, remained active on the platform as of the time of reporting.
From what's publicly available, there's no indication that Polymarket would have taken down the bet if not for the potent combination of negative attention and reporters reaching out for comment.
Why it matters
For service providers: Platforms and brands associated with Polymarket or similar prediction markets may face reputational risk from the absence of proactive content policies around active criminal and civil cases.
For media: The timeline suggests that media pressure, not internal policy enforcement, was the direct trigger for the market's removal, raising questions about how prediction platforms self-regulate sensitive content.
Read the full story at Defector
Sources
- Defector · Diana Moskovitz: Polymarket Was Allowing Bets On Sexual Assault Cases Until People Started Asking Questions
- Yahoo Sports: Polymarket’s athlete endorsers face scrutiny after market offered on Cornell 7
- Awful Announcing · Tyler Lauletta: Polymarket’s athlete endorsers face scrutiny after market offered on Cornell 7