Strauss-Kahn Pleads Not Guilty

Former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn entered a plea of not guilty on Monday to charges he sexually assaulted a hotel maid in a case that ended his chance of becoming the French president.
Wearing a dark suit, blue dress shirt and a dark blue tie, Mr. Strauss-Kahn walked in slowly to a downtown Manhattan courtroom from a side door. He looked away as the charges related to an alleged sexual assault of a maid at the Sofitel hotel in midtown Manhattan on May 14 were read out by a courtroom staff member.
Then, when asked for his plea, he stood up and uttered a French-accented, "not guilty." 
His appearance in court, accompanied by his wife who sat in the first row, was the first since he was released from jail and placed on house arrest more than two weeks ago. The next hearing for Mr. Strauss-Kahn was set for July 18th. In court on Monday, Mr. Strauss-Kahn's lawyers asked prosecutors to turn over evidence in the case.
Outside, a group of hotel workers' union members, some of them dressed in black and white maid uniforms, had gathered in front of the courthouse and were penned in by police barricades. They were chanting, "Shame on you!"
The 62-year-old French politician, once seen as a likely candidate for his country's presidency, has indicated he would argue the encounter was consensual. His lawyers have suggested in a recent letter to prosecutors that they have information that could "gravely undermine the credibility of the complainant," a single mother originally from Guinea. They have also accused New York law enforcement officials of leaking information to the media.
Prosecutors have said that her account is credible based on her immediate outcry to hotel employees and police after the incident and physical evidence that corroborates her story.
Mr. Strauss-Kahn, who resigned his IMF post within days of his arrest, has been living in a luxury townhouse in the downtown Manhattan neighborhood of TriBeCa. A judge ordered him held under armed guard on bail of $1 million cash and $5 million bond. The security arrangement is estimated to cost $200,000 a month, prosecutors have said.
The judge told Mr. Strauss-Khan on Monday that he has a right and an obligation to show up for future court proceedings, and that he would lose his right to be present at those hearings and his trial and could face sanctions if he doesn't appear.

Former IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn and his wife, Anne Sinclair, arrive for a hearing at Manhattan State Supreme Court on Monday.