GONE WERE the rumpled clothing and growth of beard that the former director of the International Monetary Fund wore in the two court appearances soon after his arrest on May 14th.
Dominique Strauss-Kahn and his wife Anne Sinclair, a former star television journalist and heiress who once modelled for the bust of Marianne, the symbol of the French republic, were elegantly dressed in dark suits, impeccably groomed, for his arraignment in Manhattan on seven counts of sexual assault and unlawful imprisonment.
At the moment they alighted yesterday morning from the black SUV with mirror windows, the couple were greeted with jeers. Mr Strauss-Kahn abandoned the attempt to button his suit jacket. His arms dropped limply to his sides. Ms Sinclair threaded her arm through his and strode decisively forward in her high heels, seeming to propel him towards the courthouse. He looked weighed down, almost broken.
A union for hotel chambermaids had bused several dozen colleagues of Nafissatou Diallo, the chambermaid from the Sofitel who says Mr Strauss-Kahn tried to rape her, to lower Manhattan. They crowded behind the police line, smart in their maids’ uniforms. “We not gonna stay quiet. We gonna speak up,” said a maid with a strong Hispanic accent. “Anytime somebody does something they shouldn’t do, we all gonna stick together and speak up for everybody.”
Asked what they wanted, a black maid replied, “Justice and respect for us”. Several days after Mr Strauss-Kahn was arrested, an Egyptian banker was accused of sexually assaulting a maid at the Pierre Hotel.
A cry broke out. “Shame on you. Shame on you. Shame on you,” the maids chanted. A report from inside the 13th floor courtroom said it was loud enough to be heard there.
Two diplomats from the French consulate in New York and two from the Guinean embassy in Washington attended the hearing. Ms Diallo (32), a widow, emigrated from Guinea, West Africa, with her young daughter seven years ago. “She has come to this country because of the great promise of America,” her lawyer, Kenneth Thompson, said later.
Inside the courtroom, Mr Strauss-Kahn spoke publicly for the first time since his arrest, with a marked French accent, when asked how he pleaded: “Not guilty.” Judge Michael Obus announced that the discovery phase of procedure had begun. The next preliminary hearing will take place at 2pm on July 18th.
Mr Strauss-Kahn’s lawyers filed a 13-page “demand for discovery”, insisting that all reports, documents, evidence – including the results of DNA tests and police records – be shared with them. They asked that the names of all witnesses be revealed, as well as any knowledge of “physical or mental disability, emotional disturbance, drug or alcohol addiction” or criminal records pertaining to witnesses. They reserved the right to conduct their own DNA tests, and said “the People” should not be allowed to listen to phone messages on Mr Strauss-Kahn’s mobile phones seized by police, or have access to the contents of his Apple computer and iPad.
The entire hearing lasted at most seven minutes. Mr Strauss-Kahn and his wife sped off from the courthouse, but did not return immediately to the $50,000 a month townhouse a few blocks away in TriBeca, which Ms Sinclair is renting for them. Regulations allow him to go to his lawyers’ offices, or to see a doctor.
Ms Sinclair has been spotted buying designer linens in Manhattan. Witnesses saw vans remove furniture, clothing, paintings and a carpet from the $4 million house which she purchased in Georgetown when he was appointed to head the IMF in 2007.
Ben Brafman, one of two high-powered defence attorneys representing Mr Strauss-Kahn, said the fact that his client pleaded not guilty was “a very eloquent, powerful statement”.
Defence lawyers have indicated that semen found on the collar of Ms Diallo’s uniform could have resulted from a consensual encounter. They will also argue that it would be impossible for Mr Strauss-Kahn, who is not particularly fit, to force a woman half his age to perform oral sex.
“Once the evidence is reviewed, it will be clear that there was no element of forcible compulsion whatsoever,” Mr Brafman said.
“Any suggestion to the contrary is simply not credible.” The legal term “forcible compulsion” appears four times in the indictment filed on May 19th. The document concludes that Mr Strauss-Kahn assaulted Ms Diallo “for the purpose of degrading and abusing said individual and for the purpose of gratifying the defendant’s sexual desire”.
The stakes are high for both sides in the case, and neither Mr Strauss-Kahn nor the district attorney, Cyrus Vance jnr, could easily compromise by seeking a plea bargain. Mr Vance has been on the job for less than 18 months and needs to prove himself after the 40-year reign of his predecessor. He recently lost a case against two New York policemen accused of raping a drunk woman whom they accompanied to her apartment.
Mr Vance has added Joan Illuzzi-Orbon and Ann Prunty – two “big guns” with a reputation for obtaining severe sentences – to the prosecution team.
Discrimination against blacks, women and the working classes – as well as societal differences between the US and France – are strong undercurrents in the Strauss-Kahn case. A new lawyer for Ms Diallo, an African-American named Kenneth Thompson who described himself as a former federal prosecutor, appeared for the first time yesterday.
“The victim wants you to know that all of Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s power, money and influence throughout the world will not change the truth of what he did to her in that hotel room,” Mr Thompson said.
“Despite the smear campaign that is being committed against her, she is standing up for her dignity as a woman. She is standing up for her self-respect as a woman. And she’s standing up for all women and children around the world who have been sexually assaulted or sexually abused and are too afraid to say something.”
Mr Strauss-Kahn’s lawyers will attempt to exclude evidence of earlier depredations. “When people talk about whether it was consensual or not, it’s all designed to distract us from asking and looking into whether there are other victims of Dominique Strauss-Kahn throughout the world,” Mr Thompson said. “We know of a young lady in France, don’t we?”
