Dominique Strauss-Kahn: prosecutors ask judge to dismiss sex charges

Strauss-Kahn expected to be told he can leave US for first time since arrest on charges he attempted to rape a hotel worker US prosecutors have asked a judge to dismiss sexual assault charges against Dominique Strauss-Kahn, bringing a controversial end to one of the biggest sex scandals in decades. A recommendation for dismissal was filed at the court clerk’s office. Strauss-Kahn is expected in court on Tuesday, where he will be told he is a free man and will be allowed to leave the country for the first time since his arrest in May on charges that he attempted to rape hotel worker Nafissatou Diallo. The case has appeared close to collapse since late June, when prosecutors revealed that Diallo had lied about being gang raped for her US asylum application and other aspects of her past. Following the revelations, prosecutors agreed to release Strauss-Kahn from house arrest, though he remained barred from leaving the country. He faced up to 25 years in prison if convicted. Diallo and her lawyers met with Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance on Monday afternoon ahead of Tuesday’s court date. Vance’s office initially gave unqualified backing to Diallo, calling her statement “a compelling and unwavering story”. Her story appeared to be backed by forensic evidence; his semen was found on her uniform and the carpet of the room where the incident took place. But as credibility issues surfaced Diallo’s lawyers clashed with Vance’s office and fought their case in public. Diallo filed a civil lawsuit against the former IMF boss on 8 August, a move that legal experts said made Vance’s position even more difficult. Pierre Hourcade, a French attorney who is also admitted to practice law in New York, said: “Dismissal does not mean he is innocent, simply that the district attorney doesn’t believe the case can go to trial.” He said some people in France were surprised that the US authorities prosecuted the case so vigorously initially only to cool on the case equally as fast. “It’s not that he doesn’t believe her, it’s that he doesn’t belive her to be a good victim. That’s the way that the American system is built,” Hourcade said. He said that as an elected official the Manhattan district attorney was under political pressure to bring cases he could win. “In France there wouldn’t be the same political pressure and truth might be rated more highly than credibility,” he said. “Nobody’s perfect. It doesn’t mean she wasn’t raped,” said Hourcade. “It’s a little shocking from my point of view.” Stuart Slotnick, a white collar crime expert at Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney, and a former Federal prosecutor, defended Vance. “This is the same DA’s office that prosecutes people who rape prostitutes. Those are very difficult cases to bring,” he said. He said it was clear that she had lied to the prosecutors on numerous occasions and that they no longer felt they could trust her. “These are the people with the greatest access to evidence, to the complainant, and they don’t believe in the case,” he said. “A prosecutor should not prosecute a case they don’t believe in.” Kenneth Thompson, Diallo’s lawyer, predicted over the weekend that prosecutors would drop the case on Monday. He told France’s RTL radio on Sunday that Diallo, “feels abandoned by the Manhattan district attorney” and that she feels “that she’s being investigated more than Strauss-Kahn”. Strauss-Kahn, 62, was arrested in May after Diallo, 32, said the then boss of the International Monetary Fund forced her to perform oral sex when she arrived to clean his suite at the Sofitel hotel in Manhattan. Strauss-Kahn, a French presidential contender, was arrested on a plane to Europe. He had been planning to hold a series of meetings about Europe’s looming debt crisis. Through his lawyers he has never contested the fact that a sexual encounter took place but has denied allegations that any act was forced. Dominique Strauss-Kahn United States France New York Dominic Rushe guardian.co.uk

Posted by on August 22, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.