New York prosecutors have asked for the dismissal of sexual assault charges against IMF (International Monetary Fund) former chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, according to the official document filed on Monday.
The papers were filed Monday afternoon in Manhattan Supreme Court. Prosecutors in the office of Cyrus R. Vance Jr., the Manhattan district attorney, requested in the papers that all charges be dropped against Strauss-Kahn, who was accused of sexually attacking a hotel maid in May. "If we do not believe her beyond a reasonable doubt, we cannot ask a jury to do so," the papers stated.
In a brief hearing at State Supreme Court in Manhattan on July 1, the judge freed Strauss-Kahn from house arrest. Prosecutors acknowledged that there were significant credibility issues with the hotel maid.
Strauss-Kahn's lawyers, William W. Taylor III and Benjamin Brafman, said in a statement that Strauss-Kahn and his family were grateful for the decision.
"We have maintained from the beginning of this case that our client is innocent. We also maintained that there were many reasons to believe that Mr. Strauss-Kahn's accuser was not credible. Mr. Strauss-Kahn and his family are grateful that the District Attorney's office took our concerns seriously and concluded on its own that this case cannot proceed further," the statement read.
Meanwhile, Kenneth P. Thompson, the lawyer for Nafissatou Diallo, the hotel maid who accused Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault said that the Manhattan district attorney had denied the right of a woman to get justice in a rape case.
"He has not only turned his back on this victim but he has also turned his back on the forensic, medical and other physical evidence in this case," said Thompson.
Strauss-Kahn is expected in court on Tuesday. He also faced a civil lawsuit filed by the hotel maid on Aug. 8.
Xinhua
