View Edward V. Byrne's profile
Follow The Mexico Gulf Reporter Blog here.
- Source-AFP photo
Last month state prosecutors in New York abandoned attempted rape charges against him, arising out of a May incident in which a hotel maid says she was attacked. But that wasn't the end of his problems. After the first case was filed, French writer Tristane Banon suddenly surfaced and said that she too had been attacked by Strauss-Kahn, in 2003. Banon (pictured) claims that Strauss-Kahn tried to rape her when she interviewed him for a book she was writing.
Prosecutors in Paris investigated the Banon case, but decided not to pursue it. Reports indicate that they concluded the evidence was closer to assault -- a very different crime than attempted rape -- and the statute of limitations had expired on the latter charge. Strauss-Kahn is suing Banon for slander in a French court.
Although Strauss-Kahn's criminal problems in the U.S. are over, the New York City maid still has a civil action pending against him. The sexual assault allegations brought his immediate political plans to a swift end. Strauss-Kahn was widely thought to have been interested in mounting a bid for president of France, which will hold an election next year. Strauss-Kahn was a popular pre-candidate, and he remains influential in French politics.
In a September television interview, Strauss-Kahn admitted to a "consensual" sexual encounter with the NYC maid, which he characterized as "moral fault" on his part. He said that his behavior was "inappropriate," but denied that it involved "violence, constraint or aggression."
No comments:
Post a Comment