What Do You Think?

[John.hergy]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/dominique-strauss-kahn/8560711/Dominique-Strauss-Kahn-his-likely-defence.html

By Jon Swaine

07 Jun 2011


Dominique Strauss-Kahn: his likely defence

Dominique Strauss-Kahn denies all seven criminal charges relating to his alleged sexual assault of a hotel chambermaid at the Sofitel on May 14. His attorneys have given several clues to how they will argue that he is not guilty. They are:

1. That a consensual sexual act may have taken place.

In court last month Ben Brafman, Mr Strauss-Kahn's lead attorney, said: "The forensic evidence, we believe, will not be consistent with a forcible encounter". This prompted suggestions that, faced with reports that DNA found on the maid's clothes matched Mr Strauss-Kahn's, Mr Brafman was accepting that some kind of sexual act took place, but would argue that it was agreed to by the 32-year-old Guinean maid. On Monday outside court, Mr Brafman said again: "It will be clear there was no element of forcible compulsion in this case whatsoever. Any suggestion to the contrary is simply not credible".

2. That Mr Strauss-Kahn was only rushing to get to lunch.

After the alleged attack, Mr Strauss-Kahn left the Sofitel in a hurry, reportedly failing to properly check out of his room. For the prosecution, John McConnell, an assistant district attorney, has argued that this suggests the former head of the International Monetary Fund needed to get away from his crime scene promptly. But Mr Strauss-Kahn's lawyers argue that he left in a rush only because he needed to make a lunch date with his daughter Camille, a 26-year-old graduate student at New York's Columbia University.

3. That Mr Strauss-Kahn would not have behaved the way he did if he were guilty.

After apparently leaving the lunch with his daughter, Mr Strauss-Kahn headed for John F. Kennedy airport, which is on the other side of New York City to Manhattan, where the alleged attack took place. En route, he twice telephoned the Sofitel to report that he had left one of his several mobile phones behind. By disclosing where he was, he allowed the New York police – who by then were at the hotel following an emergency call – to send detectives to arrest him. Mr Brafman has said such a move would have been "inconsistent with logic" if his client were guilty. Bizarrely, Mr Strauss-Kahn's mobile phone was not even at the hotel.

4. That Mr Strauss-Kahn was not capable of such an attack.

Citing unnamed sources that are said to have knowledge of Mr Strauss-Kahn's defence team's thinking, The New York Times reported on Monday that his attorneys are "expected to pursue the issue of whether it is even physically possible for an unarmed man, who is not particularly physically imposing, to force a person to engage in oral sex." It is likely that such a defence will also hinge on the physical size of the 32-year-old Guinean maid, who is not being named or photographed due to the nature of the alleged crimes.

5. That the maid cannot be trusted.

Mr Strauss-Kahn's attorneys last month claimed to have crucial evidence that would damage the integrity of the maid's story. Their comment came in a complaint to the judge about leaks to the New York media by investigators or prosecutors. "Were we intent on improperly feeding this media frenzy, we could now release substantial information that in our view would seriously undermine the quality of this prosecution and also gravely undermine the credibility of the complainant in the case," they said. On Monday Kenneth Thompson, the maid's new lawyer, claimed a "smear campaign" had been mounted against his client.

[John.hergy]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/dominique-strauss-kahn/8560707/Dominique-Strauss-Kahn-the-allegations.html

Dominique Strauss-Kahn: the allegations

Dominique Strauss-Kahn is alleged to have locked a 32-year-old hotel maid in his suite at the Sofitel in Manhattan, attempted to rape her and then forced her to perform a sex act on him.

The seven criminal charges against him are outlined in an indictment filed at New York Supreme Court by the Grand Jury of the County of New York. They are:

1. Criminal sexual act in the first degree: Mr Strauss-Kahn is alleged to have "engaged in oral sexual conduct with an individual ... by forcible compulsion".

2. Criminal sexual act in the first degree (second count): Mr Strauss-Kahn is alleged to have again "engaged in oral sexual conduct with an individual ... by forcible compulsion".

3. An attempt to commit the crime of rape in the first degree: Mr Strauss-Kahn allegedly "attempted to engage in sexual intercourse with an individual ... by forcible compulsion".

4. Sexual abuse in the first degree: Mr Strauss-Kahn allegedly "subjected an individual to sexual contact ... by forcible compulsion".


5. Unlawful imprisonment in the second degree: Mr Strauss-Kahn allegedly "restrained an individual".

6. Sexual abuse in the third degree: Mr Strauss-Kahn allegedly "subjected an individual to sexual contact ... without said individual's consent".

7. Forcible touching: Mr Strauss-Kahn allegedly "intentionally, and for no legitimate purpose, forcibly touched the sexual and other parts of an individual ... for the purpose of degrading and abusing said individual and for the purpose of satisfying [his] sexual desire".

He denies the charges.

[John.hergy]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/dominique-strauss-kahn/8559926/Dominique-Strauss-Kahn-alleged-victim-to-testify-lawyer-says.html


Monday 13 June 2011


Dominique Strauss-Kahn: alleged victim to testify, lawyer says
The woman who alleges that Dominique Strauss-Kahn tried to rape her will testify in court, her lawyer has said.


"She's a woman of dignity and respect," lawyer Kenneth Thompson said of the 32-year-old immigrant from west Africa who has accused Strauss-Kahn of sexually assaulting her when she went to clean his hotel room.

"It was a terrible sex assault on an innocent woman. She's going to come to the court house. She's going to tell the truth. What she wants is justice," Mr Thompson said, speaking outside the New York Supreme Court.

The accusations against one of the world's most famous men has drawn huge media attention but to this day his accuser remains barely known.

Strauss-Kahn's defence team on Monday again hinted that their strategy could be to maintain that any sexual activity in the Sofitel suite was consensual.

"It will be clear that there was no element of forcible compulsion in this case whatsoever. Any suggestion to the contrary is simply not credible," defence lawyer Benjamin Brafman said.

The alleged victim has so far been kept in the shadows, hidden from the press pack as she waits possibly for months to testify in the trial, amid rumors circulating about her character and background.

But Mr Thompson said that "she's not courting publicity."

"The victim wants you to know that all of Dominique Strauss-Kahn's power, money, and influence throughout the world will not keep the truth about what he did to her in that hotel room from coming out," Thompson said.

The former IMF chief, who resigned as head of the International Monetary Fund in the days after his arrest on May 14, pleaded not guilty to the charges of sexual assault and attempted rape on Monday.

A full three weeks after Strauss-Kahn's arrest, all officials will say about the alleged victim is that she is 32, immigrated from west Africa and worked for three years at a Sofitel in Times Square. She also has a teenage daughter.

Prosecutors are barred by law from saying who she is. Journalists have uncovered her name, but most big media outlets prohibit publication, limiting exposure to French media, which have different rules.

Although reporters have visited her former Harlem apartment building - and even her extended family's house in a remote part of Guinea - almost nothing about the maid's personal life is known. Her current whereabouts remain secret.

Legal experts say the maid's furtiveness is understandable.

"It's very common that women who are claiming they were sexually abused don't come forward," said Jay K. Goldberg, a criminal defense attorney with experience in rape cases. "There's no reason for her to make an appearance and she's not required to be in court until the trial."

[John.hergy]

http://www.euronews.net/2011/06/09/legal-battle-heats-up-in-strauss-kahn-case/

Legal battle heats up in Strauss-Kahn case

09/06/2011


What is likely to be a fierce legal battle in the Dominique Strauss-Kahn case appears to have started in earnest.

The lawyer of the hotel chambermaid who accuses the former IMF chief of sexual assault has launched an appeal on French state television for other alleged victims to come forward.

Kenneth Thompson said on France 2: “What we want to discover is if there are any other women in France or in Africa who may have been abused by Dominique Strauss-Kahn. Please, call me, contact me. We want to help you. We want to talk to you.”

A young French woman is considering making a complaint against Strauss-Kahn over an alleged sexual assault in 2002. However, Tristane Banon’s lawyer says she does not want to testify in the US.

Strauss-Kahn, who was formerly seen as a favourite to become French president, has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. His lawyers say they are confident he will be found innocent.

[John.hergy]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/13803089


17 June 2011


Dominique Strauss-Kahn 'claimed diplomatic immunity'

Former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn claimed diplomatic immunity and complained about being handcuffed as he was arrested for sexual assault in New York, official documents reveal.

Transcripts released by prosecutors (http://www.courts.state.ny.us/whatsnew/pdf/voluntary-disclosure-form.pdf) in New York reveal the detail of the day Mr Strauss-Kahn was arrested at the city's JFK airport.

He has since resigned from the IMF and is living on bail in New York.

He has pleaded not guilty to charges of sexual assault on a hotel chambermaid.


Airport ruse

The transcripts reveal details how hotel staff and police investigators managed to detain Mr Strauss-Kahn as he attempted to leave the country on an Air France jet.

As has previously been reported, Mr Strauss-Kahn phoned the Sofitel Hotel about 1530 local time (1930 GMT), saying he had left his mobile phone.

While police listened in, hotel promised to return it to him at the Air France terminal at JFK International Airport. Instead, police arrived to arrest him.

At the airport police station, detectives ordered Mr Strauss-Kahn to empty his pockets, the documents show.

"Is that necessary?" he asked when handcuffs were produced.

"Yes it is," said Detective Diwan Maharaj of the New York Port Authority Police.

Mr Strauss-Kahn then asserted he had diplomatic immunity, and asked to speak to the French consulate.

Ten minutes later, Mr Strauss-Kahn asked if he could be handcuffed "in the front", and five minutes after that, he said, "I need to make a call and let them know I won't be at my meeting tomorrow. These handcuffs are tight."

About 2045 local time, Mr Strauss-Kahn was at a detective's office in Manhattan, and asked if he could have coffee.

Fifteen minutes later, Mr Strauss-Kahn asked, "Do I need a lawyer?"

Breakfast

By the time of this conversation, the documents reveal that Mr Strauss-Kahn may have changed his mind over the issue of diplomatic immunity.

"It is your right to have one in this country if you want. I don't know if you have some kind of diplomatic status," Detective Miguel Rivera replied.

"No, no no, I'm not trying to use that," Mr Strauss-Kahn said. "I just want to know if I need a lawyer."

"That is up to you," Mr Rivera responded.

Several days after his arrest, the IMF said Mr Strauss-Kahn, as managing director, had only limited immunity that was not applicable in the New York case.

Two hours after Mr Strauss-Kahn asked whether he needed a lawyer, he told the detectives the lawyer had told him not to talk.

The following morning, police asked Mr Strauss-Kahn if he wanted something to eat.

"I would like some eggs," he said.

The following evening, Mr Strauss-Kahn asked for a sandwich.

[John.hergy]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13405268


20 May 2011


Profile: Dominique Strauss-Kahn


Revered for his economic acumen and admired for his political nous and powers of persuasion, Dominique Strauss-Kahn has made a name for himself in the grandest salons of international finance.

Once an academic, once a French finance minister, the 62-year-old head of the International Monetary Fund was described as charming and witty by those who studied and worked with him.

His appointment as IMF chief in 2007 came a year before the descent into global financial crisis heralded an unprecedented period of instability.

Since then he was widely credited with transforming the US-based IMF into a key player in the unfolding financial and economic turmoil back in Europe.

With eurozone members struggling to agree on the best way to fix the damage - and limit the contagion - from the crises in Greece, Ireland and Portugal, the IMF, and Mr Strauss-Kahn, had come to the fore.

Given his high profile, Mr Strauss-Kahn had come to be seen as a realistic and popular potential challenger to Nicolas Sarkozy for the French presidency in 2012.

But charges of attempted rape in a New York hotel have brought all that to a halt, for now.

'Seduced with words'

Born in 1949 to left-wing Jewish parents, Mr Strauss-Kahn spent his early years in Morocco, leaving with his family after a devastating earthquake in 1960.

He studied law and economics in Paris during and after the famed protests of 1968, eventually becoming an academic known for his diligence and professionalism at the University of Nancy and, later, the University of Paris.

His economics emphasised the practical, overlooking the most radical ideas of the Vietnam student movement while sympathising with the anti-war aims.

In person, Mr Strauss-Kahn also confounded the expectations of those who saw academics as fusty, bookish sorts.

His easy charm won him fans on the lecture circuit, and his reputation for good looks and a way with words followed him around for most of his career.

"He seduced with words," one French journalist told the BBC earlier this year.

He is also known to enjoy a lavish lifestyle. He drew around $500,000 (£307,000) annually in salary and expenses from the IMF and his legal team told the court he has a net worth of roughly $2m.

However, his wife of 20 years, the American-French journalist Anne Sinclair, is one of France's richest heiresses, having inherited a fortune from her grandfather, Paul Rosenberg, a leading French art dealer who represented Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse among others.

The couple are said to own properties in Paris, Washington and Marakkesh, and she has reportedly rented an apartment in Manhattan where he will remain under house arrest until his trial.

In politics, though, Dominique Strauss-Kahn seemed prepared to work for his rewards, taking up a seat in France's National Assembly for the town of Sarcelles, just outside Paris.

His work in Sarcelles, described as a "challenging" town, won him social credibility.

After a stint as industry minister he was appointed finance minister in Lionel Jospin's Socialist government in 1998, responsible for steering France towards the era of the euro.

Controversy forced him from office by 2000, though, as he faced accusations - of which he eventually cleared - of corruption and financial scandal.

Checkmate?

He sought national prominence again in 2006 but lost out to Segolene Royal in the battle to become the Socialist Party candidate for president.

When he re-emerged in 2007 as the new man at the helm of the IMF, Mr Strauss-Kahn's reputation as a ladies' man was not far behind him.

In 2008 he was censured by the organisation when he was found to have had an affair with a Hungarian economist.

She left the IMF but Mr Strauss-Kahn stayed on, and stayed married to Ms Sinclair.

Asked about his personal life, those who know Mr Strauss-Kahn - nicknamed Chaud Lapin (literally Hot Rabbit) by some - suggest that he may have benefited from the traditional French reluctance to probe the private lives of public figures.

He continued to win praise at the IMF, with one colleague who recently left the organisation comparing his political skill to that of a "top-level chess player".

"The man is an absolutely brilliant political operator," Simon Johnson said in a recent BBC profile of Mr Strauss-Kahn. ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00rz6py )

Now facing charges of alleged rape, criminal sexual assault and attempted imprisonment in the New York courts, Dominique Strauss-Kahn faces his biggest challenge yet - to clear his name.

He has at least won one small victory - securing bail from the notorious Rikers Island jail, albeit on strict terms that includes a $1m cash bail plus an additional $5m insurance bond.

[John.hergy]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13408002

16 May 2011


IMF chief Strauss-Kahn undergoing tests over sex charge


William Taylor, defence lawyer: "He denies any wrongdoing"


IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn has consented to a medical examination over allegations of serious sexual assault.

Mr Strauss-Kahn, who was arrested in New York, denies charges of attacking and attempting to rape a hotel maid.

His court hearing scheduled for Sunday was postponed until Monday to allow forensic tests to be carried out.

French writer Tristane Banon is considering legal action against Mr Strauss-Kahn for an alleged sexual assault in 2002, her lawyer said.

Ms Banon, 31, claimed Mr Strauss-Kahn attacked her when she went to interview him. She chose not to file suit against him at the time.

Mr Strauss-Kahn, a former finance minister, has until now been considered a frontrunner to be the Socialist candidate for president in 2012.

He had been scheduled to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday in Berlin and then attend an EU finance ministers' meeting in Brussels on Monday on bailouts for Portugal and Greece.

Correspondents say he has been central to efforts to stabilise the finances of struggling eurozone member states and his detention is likely to complicate the process.

The Euro fell half a cent to $1.4063 when Asian markets opened on Monday - a six-week low against the dollar - reflecting concerns about the impact the arrest could have on bailouts plans for Portugal and Greece.

Mr Strauss-Kahn - often referred to in France simply as DSK - was detained at JFK airport on Saturday night as he prepared to fly to Europe.

He is believed to have been in New York on personal business. He does not have diplomatic immunity, a New York police spokesman said.

The 62-year-old was kept overnight in a special unit for sexual harassment in New York's Harlem district. On Sunday he was charged with a "criminal sexual act, unlawful imprisonment, and attempted rape".

Police say the 32-year-old woman who made the allegations has formally identified him in a line-up.

Mr Strauss-Kahn's clothing will be tested for DNA traces, the New York Times reported. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/16/nyregion/maid-picks-imf-chief-as-attacker-in-lineup.html?ref=global-home

'International conspiracy'

Speaking outside court in Manhattan, lawyer William Taylor said Mr Strauss-Kahn had "willingly consented to a scientific and forensic examination", adding that he was "tired but fine".

A second lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said his client "intends to vigorously defend these charges and he denies any wrongdoing".

Mr Strauss-Kahn's wife, prominent French journalist Anne Sinclair, has also said she believes he is innocent.

"I do not believe for one second the accusations brought against my husband," she said in a statement sent to the AFP news agency on Sunday.

The BBC's David Chazan, in Paris, says there has been a mixed reaction to the arrest in France, with some people seeing it as a national humiliation but others suggesting that he might have been set up by his political opponents.

Mr Strauss-Kahn was widely expected to announce his intention to run for the French presidency soon, and was seen as having a genuine chance of beating President Nicolas Sarkozy.

Paris regional councillor Michelle Sabban told AFP: "I am convinced it is an international conspiracy... This is a new form of political assassination."

Socialist legislator Jean-Marie Le Guen said: "The facts as they were reported today have nothing to do with the Dominique Strauss-Kahn whom we know."

Career damaged

Meanwhile, a centre-right opponent of Mr Strauss-Kahn's, Dominique Paille, said if the allegations were true, it would be "an historic moment, but in the negative sense, for French political life".

"I hope that everyone respects the presumption of innocence. I cannot manage to believe this affair," he told French TV.

But the leader of the National Front party, Marine Le Pen, said Mr Strauss-Kahn had been "definitively discredited".

Mr Strauss-Kahn has won praise for his stewardship of the IMF, which he has guided through difficult times including the recent world financial crisis.

In 2008, he was criticised by the IMF board for an affair with a subordinate member of staff. The board said the affair had been consensual but reflected a "serious error of judgement".

John Lipsky has been appointed acting managing director of the IMF in his absence.

The fund's director of external relations, Caroline Atkinson, said the organisation remained "fully functioning and operational".

[John.hergy]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13412092


16 May 2011

Who, What, Why: Does Strauss-Kahn have immunity?


International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn has been charged in the US with a criminal sexual act, attempted rape and unlawful imprisonment. But could the Frenchman claim diplomatic immunity?

Diplomats have had immunity from prosecution in their host country for centuries - meaning they cannot be arrested or prosecuted for any offences they commit, from minor parking violations to serious crimes of violence.

This immunity, spelt out in the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, applies both when they are carrying out their official duties, and when they are off-duty.

As the head of one of the UN's specialised agencies, the IMF managing director is just as immune from prosecution as any diplomat, says Jovan Kurbalija, director of DiploFoundation, a Geneva-based organisation researching the role of diplomacy in the modern age.

Furthermore, unlike a diplomat - who is immune from prosecution only in the country where he or she is based - the head of a UN agency is immune from prosecution in all countries.

There is a big difference between the head of the IMF, and its rank-and-file members, who are immune from prosecution only with regard to "acts performed... in their official capacity".

Mr Kurbalija says the principle establishing immunity from prosecution for the heads of UN agencies is laid down in article six of the 1947 Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the Specialized Agencies.

This states: "The executive head of each specialised agency... shall be accorded... the privileges and immunities, exemptions and facilities accorded to diplomatic envoys, in accordance with international law."

"The general principle is that heads of international organisations have full diplomatic immunity," Mr Kurbalija says.

Waiving immunity

Sometimes when a diplomat is accused of a serious offence, his or her government will waive immunity, allowing a prosecution to go ahead.

Mr Kurbalija says that Mr Strauss-Kahn has tacitly waived his own immunity, by submitting to forensic tests and stating his intention to fight the case.

Formally, the decision to waive Mr Strauss-Kahn's immunity rests with the IMF itself, he says, not with Mr Strauss-Kahn as an individual.

"An individual cannot waive his or her immunity - but if he decides to waive his immunity, it will be just a formality [to waive it] from the IMF," Mr Kurbalija says.

But Mr Strauss-Kahn could choose to invoke his diplomatic immunity in future, he says - and this could confront the IMF with a more difficult decision.

The IMF has so far given no clue about its position on the question.

Although Mr Strauss-Kahn was visited on Saturday by the French consul general, an unnamed French official also told Le Monde that any immunity was a matter for the IMF and the US. "To me, there is no immunity," the official said. "His Frenchness is not at stake."

Mr Strauss-Kahn's apparent decision to fight the case echoes an earlier episode where he chose to tackle a legal problem head-on.

In 1999, he resigned as France's minister of economy and finance, to focus on his defence against an accusation that he backdated documents to justify his consultancy fees for work on a student health insurance fund.

He was acquitted in 2001.

[John.hergy]

anyone notice the change of writing style about the guy's guilt?
from nearly trying to hanging him to maybe we better wait and see.
perhaps there is something to the coincidence of a female french speaking Muslim house keeper who when into a guests room while it was known to still be occupied by one of a Jew that was likely to become the next prime minister of France.

With the political issues between the french government and the Muslims in France a Jewish prime minister would be considered the ultimate insult to them.

Even if the Muslims loose the case, they have still sunk this guy's political career which is very likely all they were really after to begin with.



copied from:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/27/nyregion/strauss-kahns-lunch-demeanor-may-play-role-in-trial.html?_r=1

Strauss-Kahn’s Demeanor at Lunch May Play Key Role in His Trial
By WILLIAM K. RASHBAUM and JOHN ELIGON
Published: June 26, 2011


Dominique Strauss-Kahn was running late.

A street fair had shut down a stretch of Avenue of the Americas between his Midtown hotel and the restaurant where he was due for lunch. Stuck in traffic, he called his daughter, Camille, from a taxi to tell her he was on his way; she should go ahead and order for him, he said. Once he arrived, they had fish and shared a chilled bottle of white wine.

The lunch that Saturday afternoon, in a wood-paneled seafood restaurant eight blocks from his hotel, began less than an hour after what prosecutors have charged was his sexual attack on a 32-year-old Guinean housekeeper who came to clean his suite. The account of the meal — its timing, its description and the events that immediately preceded it — is based on interviews with people briefed on an investigation undertaken on behalf of Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s lawyers.

But many of the details of what has been uncovered by the Police Department and the office of the Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance Jr., which is prosecuting the case, have been closely held, and officials in both offices would not confirm or deny the account’s general outlines or the details.

The lunch, which lasted about 90 minutes, one of Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s lawyers said at his bail hearing, could figure prominently in the case, which has already cost him his post as the managing director of the International Monetary Fund and his status as a leading contender for the French presidency.

Indeed, if one of several security cameras visible in the large restaurant captured the pair, the images of father and daughter in McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurant, less than an hour after the encounter with the housekeeper, could serve as powerful circumstantial evidence. It could bolster the defense case if they laugh or appear to share a leisurely meal; it could support the prosecution if it shows the 62-year-old white-haired Frenchman looking distracted or upset.

Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s lawyers, William W. Taylor III and Benjamin Brafman, have sought from prosecutors any video recordings, including anything from the restaurant on West 52nd Street near Avenue of the Americas, the New York outpost of a nationwide chain. (The choice, perhaps incongruous for a man renting a town house listed for $50,000 a month, was made by his daughter, according to the person familiar with the defense inquiry.)

But it is unclear whether the police and prosecutors have any recordings from the restaurant, and, if they do, what they show. Paul J. Browne, the Police Department’s chief spokesman, and Erin M. Duggan, the chief spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office, would not discuss the issue. Tori Harms, a spokeswoman for the restaurant company, which is based in Portland, Ore., would not answer questions about the matter, saying in a statement that “it is always our policy to cooperate fully with law enforcement authorities when matters or investigations involve our company” and that the company does not “discuss publicly details about any restaurant guest without his or her consent.”

What seems clear, however, is that along with the details of the encounter on May 14 — prosecutors say Mr. Strauss-Kahn ripped the woman’s panty hose, tried to rape her and forced her to perform oral sex, while his lawyers say there is no evidence of force and suggest that any sex was consensual — both sides have focused on events later that day.

At issue are Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s movements in the hours between the incident, which prosecutors say occurred around noon, and when police detectives from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey lured him from his first-class seat on Air France Flight 23 at 4:40 p.m., minutes before it was to depart Kennedy Airport for Paris.

While few details have been made public, a picture of Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s afternoon has begun to emerge from interviews with people briefed on the defense inquiry and through court records filed in the case.

Mr. Strauss-Kahn checked out of his suite, Room 2806 at the Sofitel on West 44th Street near Avenue of the Americas, at 12:28 p.m., according to a bail application filed on his behalf.




http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/27/nyregion/strauss-kahns-lunch-demeanor-may-play-role-in-trial.html?_r=2&pagewanted=2

Strauss-Kahn’s Demeanor at Lunch May Play Key Role in His Trial

Published: June 26, 2011

(Page 2 of 2)

One of the prosecutors in the case, John A. McConnell, said at Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s arraignment on May 16 that video recordings from a security camera in the hotel lobby that show him leaving “minutes after the incident” depict what “appears to be a man who was in a hurry.”

Mr. Brafman, however, said then that Mr. Strauss-Kahn was rushing to his luncheon appointment.

Mr. Strauss-Kahn traveled from the hotel by taxi, bringing along his two small dark-colored bags, one an overnight case and the other a briefcase, according to the person briefed on the defense investigation.

Detoured by the street fair, traffic moved slowly, the person said. It took him 15 minutes to cover the eight blocks, arriving at roughly 12:45 p.m., according to the bail application.

He and his daughter, the person who was briefed said, sat in one of several booths at the restaurant, which have dark green leather seat cushions and plush chenille backs and look out onto West 52nd Street.

At Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s bail hearing on May 19, another of his lawyers, Mr. Taylor, called the meal “a leisurely lunch with a member of his family.”

At the end of the meal, according to the person, father and daughter were joined briefly by her boyfriend; the meeting, the person said, was the reason for Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s visit to New York. Mr. Strauss-Kahn paid for lunch with his credit card, the person said.

He was back in another taxi and headed to Kennedy Airport at 2:15 p.m., Mr. Taylor said at the May 19 hearing.

On his way to the airport, he apparently realized he had lost track of one of the several phones he usually carried, and he used another to dial his daughter, the person said. The missing phone was the one issued by the I.M.F. and he was apparently concerned about sensitive material on the device, the person said.

He asked his daughter to return to the restaurant to look for it, the person said, which she did. She and the waitress who had served them lunch were later seen crawling on the floor, looking under the table, another person with knowledge of the matter said.

But they had no luck, and he eventually called the Sofitel at 3:29 p.m. to say he had left his phone in his suite, according to court papers filed by the prosecution. The police were already there, responding to the reports of the attack, and they listened in on the call, coaching a hotel employee to say the hotel would look for the phone in his room, according to the court papers. During a second call, at 3:42 p.m., Mr. Strauss-Kahn was told the hotel employee would bring his phone to him. In a third call, at 4:03 p.m., he asked when the hotel employee would arrive.

He had arrived at Kennedy around 3 p.m., and a security camera there had captured a man that may have been him arriving at the curbside drop-off, according to a person with knowledge of his movements at the airport.

Air France security cameras photographed him being escorted through the terminal by two Air France employees, and being shepherded through airport security screening and to the airline’s first-class lounge by one of the Air France employees, the person said.

Any Air France recordings are also being sought by the defense, according to their discovery demand, a document that seeks evidence the prosecution may possess, but the person said that the airline had told investigators that additional recordings made by a security camera in the lounge, where he was awaiting the return of his phone, had been recorded over and were not available.

It was apparently his effort to get the phone that ultimately resulted in his capture, according to the papers filed by the prosecution.

The papers suggest that Mr. Strauss-Kahn left his seat and came to the doorway of the jetliner moments before the plane was to leave because he believed the two men there were hotel employees bringing him his phone.

As he approached the men on the Gate 4 jetway at 4:40 p.m., he asked them, apparently before either had a chance to speak, “Do you have my cellphone?” according to the document.

But the men, Detectives Terry Ng and Dewan Maharaj of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department, did not, and the document included the following exchange.

“Mr. Dominique Strauss-Kahn?” Detective Maharaj asked.

“Yes,” he replied.

“We would like you to come with us,” the detective said.

[John.hergy]

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2011/06/27/Restaurant-video-of-Strauss-Kahn-reviewed/UPI-64151309182069/


Restaurant video of Strauss-Kahn reviewed
Published: June 27, 2011 at 9:41 AM

NEW YORK, June 27 (UPI) -- The demeanor of Dominique Strauss-Kahn likely will play a key role in his trial on sexual assault-related charges in New York, attorneys for both sides said.

Strauss-Kahn met his daughter for lunch soon after the alleged sexual assault against a hotel maid occurred May 14. The account of the meal -- its timing and events that immediately preceded it -- is based on interviews with people briefed on an investigation conducted on behalf of Strauss-Kahn's lawyers, The New York Times reported Sunday.

Many of the details of what was uncovered by police and the district attorney's office have been tightly guarded and officials in both offices would neither confirm nor deny the account's outline or details.

The defendant's attorneys said the 90-minute lunch Strauss-Kahn had with his daughter could figure prominently in the case, which already cost him his post as the International Monetary Fund's managing director and his status as a leading contender for the French presidency.

It all depends on what restaurant security cameras show and how the video is interpreted, the Times said. It could bolster the defense case if father and daughter laugh or appear to enjoy a leisurely meal, or it could support the prosecution if it shows Strauss-Kahn appearing distracted or upset.

[John.hergy]

We all know sexual assault be it against a male or a female is a serious crime and it needs to be taken seriously but when this happens . . .

= = = =

The newspaper said law enforcement officials had uncovered questions related to the 32-year-old hotel maid's asylum application, and unconfirmed links to criminal activity, such as involvement with money laundering and drug dealing.

Multiple individuals made cash deposits - amounting to about $100,000 - into the accuser's bank account in the past two years, and prosecutors had recorded conversations with the maid where she discussed with one of those individuals the pay-off from her sex assault accusations, the report said.


= = = =

It undermines the cases and credibility of every person that has been sexually assaulted. For people that do this type of deception throw us back in time many many years where instead of believing the "victim" people start questioning what the “victim” did to cause the attack, if the attack really happened or is the “victim” is just wanting “easy money”, a way to discredit the other person, etc.

I personally think if it is proven that an "alleged victim" is caught / proven to be lying about being attacked then the every charge possible should be thrown at them. From filing false police report, defamation of character, slander and libel charges, contempt of court to perjuring themselves in court.

As well as in cases like this one where it appears that several people paid the little muslim um (insert your favorite colorful expletive here) we should also be arresting and prosecuting anyone that was an accessory to or helped to instigate the crime(s).

Two clear messages need to be sent out with sexual assault cases

1. sexual assaults will not be tolerated and punishments will be harsh.

And

2. filing false sexual assault charges will not be tolerated either and punishments will be just as harsh.

And in this case where the false charges appear to have religious and political motivations potentially adding racist hate crime charges. To the list.

We need to send a very clear message to Muslims that unlike in Islamic controlled countries where it is not a crime for a Muslim to lie (even in court) about or against a non-muslim (especially non-muslims that refuse to be totally subjugated by Islam) in free countries such things are not and will not be tolerated.

They may have managed to eliminate as they would see it “a lowly Jew” from ruling over Muslims in France but we (everyone else) can make sure that all Muslims though out the world understand that such tactics will not be tolerated in free societies.



= = = = = = = = =

copied from:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/strauss-kahn-rape-case-close-to-collapse/story-e6frg6so-1226085491782


Strauss-Kahn rape case 'close to collapse'
From: AFP
July 01, 2011


THE criminal case against ex-IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, accused of sexually assaulting a New York hotel maid, is on the verge of collapsing, the New York Times is reporting.
Citing two unnamed law enforcement officials close to the case, the Times said prosecutors did not believe much of the story told by the French politician's accuser - a Guinea-born hotel maid - and that she had repeatedly lied to them since the May 14 alleged attack.

Prosecutors will likely tell the court today, when Strauss-Kahn is set to make an unexpected reappearance ahead of the next scheduled hearing on July 18, that they "have problems with the case,'' in contrast to their once steel confidence in the evidence against him, according to the Times.

At the hearing, Justice Michael Obus was expected to consider a change in the bail conditions under which Strauss-Kahn was released to house arrest -- including 24-hour security monitoring and an ankle bracelet.

The revelations come just days after Christine Lagarde was appointed as head of the International Monetary Fund, replacing her compatriot Strauss-Kahn.

"It is a mess, a mess on both sides,'' one official told the newspaper.

The revelations could prove an extraordinary turn-around for former IMF director, as the newspaper said he could be released from house arrest due to questions surrounding his accuser.

The newspaper said law enforcement officials had uncovered questions related to the 32-year-old hotel maid's asylum application, and unconfirmed links to criminal activity, such as involvement with money laundering and drug dealing.

Multiple individuals made cash deposits - amounting to about $100,000 - into the accuser's bank account in the past two years, and prosecutors had recorded conversations with the maid where she discussed with one of those individuals the pay-off from her sex assault accusations, the report said.

Strauss-Kahn, a French national, has denied all seven charges including trying to rape the woman and sexually assaulting her when she came to clean his hotel suite in a luxury Manhattan hotel.

Earlier on Thursday, French newspaper Liberation, citing Strauss-Kahn's defence lawyers, said he would probably challenge the legality of the identification line-up that took place a day after his May 14 arrest, where the then-IMF director had been picked out by the alleged victim.

Legal experts noted yesterday that a procedural error in the case would be difficult to prove, but could strengthen the defence argument that police had made errors in the hours after his arrest.

"It looks like one of the things they might raise at a preliminary hearing,'' Alexander Reinert, a law professor at New York's Yeshiva University, told AFP.

"It's going to be a stretch, legally. But it might throw out some of the evidence, and it could undermine the case.''

[John.hergy]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13993866

1 July 2011

Ex-IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn freed without bail


Dominique Strauss-Kahn looked relaxed as he emerged from court alongside his wife


Former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn has been released from house arrest and had his $6m (£3.7m) cash bail and bond returned amid doubts over the credibility of his accuser.

Prosecutors have agreed that Mr Strauss-Kahn should be freed "on his own recognisance", meaning he must simply promise to appear in court.

He is accused of sexually assaulting a maid in a New York hotel on 14 May.

The case is now close to collapse, US media reports say.

The 62-year-old French politician - who had been seen as a leading candidate for the French presidency - appeared in court in New York on Friday over the sexual assault case.


'Substantial change'

After assessing disclosures by prosecutors from the office of the Manhattan district attorney, a judge rescinded the strict bail terms imposed on Mr Strauss-Kahn, but did order that his passport be retained so he could not travel outside the US.

In a letter submitted to the court prosecutors said that the maid gave false testimony to a grand jury, omitting the fact that she cleaned another room before alerting a supervisor to her claims of sexual assault.

"I understand that the circumstances of this case have changed substantially, and I agree the risk that he would not be here has receded quite a bit. I release Mr Strauss-Kahn at his own recognisance," Justice Michael Obus told the court on Friday.

"In the meantime there will be no rush to judgment on this case," Mr Obus said.

On the court steps, opposing lawyers each maintained their case.

"I want to remind all of you that at each appearance in the last six weeks, we asked you and asked the world not to rush to judgement - now I think you can understand why," said Mr Strauss-Kahn's lawyer, William Taylor.

"We believe the next step will lead to the complete dismissal of the charges," he added.

After Friday's hearing, Mr Strauss-Kahn strode out of court smiling, with his wife on his arm.

In earlier court hearings, prosecutors had spoken of the strength of their case. One attorney said the proof against him was "substantial".

Now prosecutors believe she may have lied under questioning and could have links to drug dealers and money-laundering.

But the alleged victim's lawyer, Kenneth P Thompson, maintained on Friday that his client's story was genuine and that Mr Strauss-Kahn was guilty of sexual assault charges.

"The only defence Dominique Strauss-Kahn has is that this sexual encounter was consensual. That is a lie," he said.

He continued at length, giving a detailed and graphic account of the maid's alleged encounter with Mr Strauss-Kahn and criticising District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr.

Mr Vance said the case would continue to be investigated, including concerns that had been raised about the credibility of Mr Strauss-Kahn's accuser.

"Our prosecutors from the Manhattan DA's office will continue their investigation into these alleged crimes and will do so until we have uncovered all relevant facts," he said.

Mr Strauss-Kahn is to appear back in court on 18 July.

Doubts over credibility

The maid claims that Mr Strauss-Kahn chased her down a hallway in his expensive hotel suite in the Sofitel hotel before sexually assaulting her.

However, unnamed law enforcement officials have now told US media the accuser has repeatedly lied since the alleged attack on 14 May.

The officials believe the woman also lied on her application for asylum in the US, particularly over an allegation that she had been raped while at home in Guinea, in West Africa.

"She actually recounted the entire story to prosecutors and later said it was false," one law enforcement official told the Associated Press news agency.

But Mr Thompson defended his client's story on Friday, offering up graphic details of the alleged encounter between Mr Strauss-Kahn and the maid.

"From day one she has described a violent sexual assault that Dominique Strauss-Kahn committed against her," Mr Thompson said, adding that Mr Strauss-Kahn bruised the maid's body and threw her to the floor.

"She has never once changed a single thing about that account. The district attorney knows that," he added.

Mr Thompson said that though the maid "may have made some mistakes", that does not mean the assault never occurred.

Following the twists to the sexual assault case on Friday, hopes among some have been raised about the possibility Mr Strauss-Kahn may once again be able to compete with Nicolas Sarkozy for the French presidency in 2012.

Mr Strauss-Kahn had been under house arrest in a New York apartment since posting a $6m (£3.7m) cash bail and bond in May.

He is charged with seven counts including four more serious felony charges - two of criminal sexual acts, one of attempted rape and one of sexual abuse - plus three misdemeanour offences, including unlawful imprisonment.

Mr Strauss-Kahn, who resigned as head of the International Monetary Fund to defend himself, vigorously denies the charges.

[John.hergy]

actually this is probably one of the few truthful statements that she made that:

[John.hergy]

and here is another piece to the puzzle, in order to really mess up this guys political career all they have to do is keep him in the states battling garbage and bureaucratic red tape until July 13 perhaps till the end of July if french political party manages to get an extension.



copied from:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43605527/ns/world_news-europe/t/new-twist-strauss-kahn-case-rocks-french-politics/


New twist in Strauss-Kahn case rocks French politics

Allies hope the 'serious issues' raised by prosecution can help revive his 2012 French presidential bid



The Associated Press
7/1/2011

PARIS — Dominique Strauss-Kahn's allies are hoping new doubt about the New York chambermaid who accused of him of sexual assault can help revive his 2012 French presidential bid just as it convinced a judge Friday to free him from house arrest without bail.

Lies by the housekeeper during questioning by investigators forced prosecutors to return to court to reassess the strict house arrest conditions that Strauss-Kahn has been under.

The decision by the court to allow Strauss-Kahn to go free without bail — it continues to hold his passport — signals that the accuser's questionable credibility may impact the charges against the defendant although they were neither dropped nor reduced. —

France was riveted by the surprising development, and welcomed by many — not only those who want to see Socialist Strauss-Kahn replace conservative Nicolas Sarkozy as president, but also many who feel the American media and public have unfairly assumed the 62-year-old Frenchman is guilty.

"Those who know Dominique Strauss-Kahn will not be surprised by this evolution of events," one of Strauss-Kahn's French lawyers and a friend for 40 years, Leon Lef Forster, told The Associated Press before the court appearance. "What he was accused of has no relation to his personality. It was something that was not credible."

Upending party politics
Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the International Monetary Fund and a prominent member of France's Socialist Party, was considered a leading potential contender for next year's presidential election in France before he was charged with attempted rape in May. He denies the allegations.

His arrest upended French politics and appeared to dash his ambitions for France's top job. While he hadn't formally declared his candidacy, for months polls had suggested that Strauss-Kahn would beat Sarkozy and enjoyed greater popularity than any other Socialist.

There was quickly speculation that the Socialist Party's primary election to choose a candidate might be delayed. The deadline for Socialists to declare candidacy for the party's presidential primary is July 13. The primary vote is scheduled for October.

"I have asked my colleagues if we can have a pause of decency in the primary process," Michele Sabban, a Socialist politician who has long known Strauss-Kahn said on BFM TV after his court appearance — covered in special reports on a handful of TV stations.

Hope was so high that some politicians speculated that the entire affair might be wrapped up immediately. The French and U.S. justice system are vastly different.

The chief of the Socialist Party, Martine Aubry, said before the hearing reports of developments in favor of Strauss-Kahn brought her "immense joy."

"I hope that the American justice system establishes all the truth tonight and allows Dominique to get out of this nightmare," she told reporters.

Aubry announced this week that she will seek the Socialist nomination for president. She and Strauss-Kahn had been rumored to be discussing some kind of joint ticket for the election.

Sarkozy, who is widely expected to seek re-election despite dismal approval ratings, did not comment publicly Friday about the new legal developments in New York.

Stained reputation
The prospect that Strauss-Kahn could be released from his strict house arrest was greeted with satisfaction in France in part because many here felt that the case had stained the country's reputation.

French viewers were shocked to see the man they thought might be their next president shackled and paraded before New York reporters. It's illegal in France to broadcast images of a suspect in handcuffs before a conviction.

Another Socialist, Jean-Marie Le Guen, said on France-Inter radio that Strauss-Kahn "will be present in the presidential campaign" and that "the political stakes are changed by this event."

"All those who dragged him in the mud are perhaps seeing things differently today, " he said on France-Info radio.

Le Guen was among many French people, both supporters and critics of Strauss-Kahn, who had claimed the IMF leader was the target of a political conspiracy to torpedo his presidential chances. Within days of his arrest, a poll suggested that a majority of French thought Strauss-Kahn was the victim of a plot.

Other French politicians and commentators urged caution Friday, noting that the case against Strauss-Kahn is ongoing and that it may be premature to jump to conclusions about France's presidential elections, held in two rounds next April in May.

Strauss-Kahn had been under armed guard in a Manhattan town house after posting a total of $6 million in cash bail and bond.

His status abruptly was changed to free without bail after the accuser admitted to prosecutors she had made up a story of being gang raped and beaten in her homeland of Guinea to enhance her application for political asylum, prosecutors said in a letter to defense lawyers.

She also misrepresented what she did immediately after the alleged attack and changed her story "on a variety of additional topics," the letter said.

[John.hergy]