USA/FILE: New York judge rejects the motion by former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn to dismiss a civil lawsuit filed by a former hotel maid who accuses him of sexual assault

Record ID: 559646

  • Title: USA/FILE: New York judge rejects the motion by former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn to dismiss a civil lawsuit filed by a former hotel maid who accuses him of sexual assault
  • Date: 2nd May 2012
  • Summary: NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (FILE - MAY 14, 2011) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF SOFITEL HOTEL IN MANHATTAN NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (FILE - JULY 28, 2011) (REUTERS) NAFISSATOU DIALLO, FORMER HOTEL MAID WHO IS ACCUSING STRAUSS-KAHN OF SEXUAL ABUSE, HOLDING PRESS CONFERENCE NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (FILE - AUGUST 23, 2011) (REUTERS) (*** FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY ***) STRAUSS-KAHN LEAVING NEW YORK COURTHOUSE WITH WIFE ANNE SINCLAIR
  • Embargoed: 17th May 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Usa, Ukraine
  • City:
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: People
  • Reuters ID: LVA5L2R6GECWSRL8MTNHV0E50KFO
  • Story Text: A New York judge on Tuesday (May 1) rejected a motion by former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the hotel maid who accused him of sexual assault, allowing the suit to go forward.
    Bronx Supreme Court Justice Douglas McKeon rejected Strauss-Kahn's argument that he enjoyed diplomatic immunity at the time of the May 14 encounter with Nafissatou Diallo, a maid at the Sofitel Hotel in midtown Manhattan. Diallo accused him of forcing her to perform oral sex, while Strauss-Kahn has said the incident was consensual.
    Calling it a "Hail Mary" attempt to secure immunity from prosecution, McKeon ruled that Strauss-Kahn's voluntary resignation from his post days after his arrest on criminal charges put an end to any immunity he might have enjoyed.
    The scandal, which made headlines around the world, scuttled Strauss-Kahn's expected bid for the French presidency.
    New York prosecutors dropped the criminal case against him in August, saying they were no longer convinced of Diallo's credibility after she made several changes in her account of what she did in the moments following the incident.
    In his decision, McKeon agreed with Diallo's lawyers that Strauss-Kahn's failure to assert immunity at the time of his criminal indictment undermined his claim.
    "If Mr. Strauss-Kahn was entitled to absolute immunity, as he contends, there was ample opportunity before now to assert it," McKeon wrote. "Mr. Strauss-Kahn cannot eschew immunity in an effort to clear his name only to embrace it now in an effort to deny Ms. Diallo the opportunity to clear hers."
    Strauss-Kahn's lawyers William Taylor III and Amit Mehta issued the following statement in response to the ruling.
    "We are disappointed that the Court did not grant our motion to dismiss the civil suit against Mr. Strauss-Kahn. He is determined to fight the claims brought against him, and we are confident that he will prevail."
    The decision was first reported by the New York Post.
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