IMF chief claims consent in hotel 'attack'

[Prometheus Bound]

Source: New York Post

IMF chief claims consent in hotel 'attack'
* French honcho claims 'consent' * Deemed a flight risk, denied bail * Lunched with daughter afterward

By LAURA ITALIANO, JAMIE SCHRAM and KATE SHEEHY

Last Updated: 6:09 AM, May 17, 2011

Posted: 1:58 AM, May 17, 2011

France's leading presidential candidate may have pounced on a Manhattan hotel maid -- but she wanted it, his lawyer asserted in court yesterday, hinting at what could be an explosive defense.

"The evidence, we believe, will not be consistent with a forcible encounter," said Ben Brafman, the high-powered lawyer of IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, at the suspect's sensational arraignment in a packed criminal courtroom.

A source close to the defense later told The Post, "There may well have been consent."

Disturbing information also emerged about Strauss-Kahn's behavior after he left the hotel -- including his coolly having lunch with his daughter, who lives in Manhattan, at a restaurant about a half-hour after the alleged attack.

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/seduced_and_she_said_oui_oui_Oj0Z4K8iFIheZa4gvTBUWN/0

---

His lawyers have changed their story. First they said he had an ironclad alibi. Now they say there was sex but it was consensual.

[Warren Stupidity]

1. at which point I stop speculating about this case.

Case closed as far as I am concerned.

[Prometheus Bound]

2. Phoning his wife on the way to the airport saying he has a problem looks pretty bad too.

[Hannah Bell]

22. link?

[Prometheus Bound]

24. Bottom of page 2 in the OP -- "serious problem"

After lunch, Strauss-Kahn hopped into in a rented black car to JFK for a 4:40 p.m. Air France flight to Paris,

Along the way, he called his wife to tell her he had a "serious problem," French media reported.

[Hannah Bell]

10. i would too. if it were not for the source. and the previous leak.

one wonders how he ever came to lead the imf being as he is apparently an imbecile.



First we have the writer saying:

France's leading presidential candidate may have pounced on a Manhattan hotel maid -- but she wanted it, his lawyer asserted in court yesterday, hinting at what could be an explosive defense.

Hinting at? If the lawyer said anything like "she wanted it" that's hardly a hint. But did the lawyer say anything like that? The quote from the lawyer is:

"The evidence, we believe, will not be consistent with a forcible encounter," said Ben Brafman, the high-powered lawyer of IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, at the suspect's sensational arraignment in a packed criminal courtroom.

somewhat more ambiguous. at the arraignment, where the charges are read & the defendant enters a plea.

A source close to the defense later told The Post, "There may well have been consent."

anonymous source. not the lawyers. alleged to be "close".



Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/seduced_and_she_said_oui_oui_Oj0Z4K8iFIheZa4gvTBUWN#ixzz1Mc3l99IB


from accusation to arraignment in 46 hours. justice sure can move fast when it wants to.

[EFerrari]

17. A rapist leading the IMF makes sense to me. n/t

[joshcryer]

18. Nice.

I think you have me on ignore but I got a laugh out of that one.

[Hannah Bell]

20. but a stupid one?

one who, soon after assaulting a hotel employee, calls the hotel to ask them to send him his phone?

one who, shortly after (allegedly) telling the world he has an alibi, says "it happened but was consensual"?

there's a fog here.....

43 hours from accusation to arraignment...

[EFerrari]

27. Socially stupid but, it was just the help after all.

I asked yesterday who this guy had crossed. Not because I think he's innocent but because things seemed to move fast and hard against him when "lesser" men have gotten away with more.

[Hannah Bell]

51. yep. 43 hours from accusation to arraignment.

[joshcryer]

25. Are you sure? I see Queens having an average of 18 hours.

http://www.ncjrs.gov/App/publications/Abstract.aspx?id=200023

Doesn't seem 'fast' to me. 40 hours without being arraigned is twice the speed of Queens. Arraignments are just bail hearings for the most part. It's almost always the fastest part of the criminal system.

[oberliner]

39. The NY Post is dreadful - I wish it was not allowed as a source here

This article is a joke and should not be taken seriously.

Reporting is atrocious.

[yardwork]

23. Agreed.

[Zorra]

44. +1

[oberliner]

3. The NY Post is a right-wing tabloid

Not a reliable source about anything.

[Prometheus Bound]

5. Yes, sorry about the NY Post, but still I thought it was newsworthy.

And they're sort of on the spot as it were, in NYC.

[oberliner]

6. I get where you are coming from - just not a fan of the source

Other news articles covering the same topic seem to be relying on the NY Post as a source.

CNBC, for example:

IMF's Head Defense to Say Sex Was Consensual: Report

Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s defense will assert that the International Monetary Fund’s alleged sexual encounter with a hotel maid was consensual, according to the New York Post.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/43058763

This is not something I would recommend.

Please note that the NY Post claims are based entirely on "anonymous sources".

[whathehell]

28. This rather laughable "defense" was carried on Cable News as well. n/t

[oberliner]

31. Was their source something other than the NY Post?

So far, I have seen no other source that didn't refer back to the NY Post article.

[whathehell]

37. I'm not sure...

I just saw it on the Daily Beast and its source was

the NY post.

[somone]

4. So the hotel maid was awestruck by His Awesomeness and immediately consented

to whatever he demanded.
Yeah, sure.

[JAnthony]

11. Lots of hotel maids were lining up to experience this kind of man before the rapture!!!!!

I think we have enough information now to realize that this guy is the best sex since Arnold Schwarzenegger! That's why the women line up to be with him !:sarcasm:

[verges]

43. self delete

[oberliner]

7. This NY Post story could very well be BS

The entire headline is based off of one alleged remark from an anonymous "source close to the defense" who has supposedly only spoken to this one right-wing NY tabloid.

[Happyhippychick]

8. Hope it's consensual for you in Rykers you slimy arrogant POS.

[joshcryer]

15. Heh, I hate these kinds of jokes.

Rape isn't a joke. But I had to admit I chuckled at that.

[Distant Observer]

9. Not clear from charging statement that SEX OCCURED, but "sexual assault" in the attempt

Might have been an offensive, crazy attempt that Strauss-Khan did not think was taken seriously, but the maid obviously found monstrous.

[jberryhill]

12. If he is going with "consent", he is so going to lose

I was hoping he'd have a much more interesting explanation than that.

Yeah, you know those hotel maids... nothing puts someone more in the mood than pushing around a cleaning cart and scrubbing toilets on the clock for low pay. They have all sorts of time and motivation to hop into beds with guests decades older than themselves.

C'mon.

[Hannah Bell]

19. read the article carefully. the lawyer's statement says nothing about consent.

that's from an anonymous source.

[jberryhill]

32. Read my post carefully - note the word "if"

We will not know his actual defense unless and until one is presented in court. Lemme try again....

"IF he goes with consent, he is so going to lose."

Clearer?

I like crime stories. We can all sit around with our thumbs up our buttcracks and wait for a trial, but nothing in a casual discussion on an internet forum is going to have any real world influence on the case.

[Hannah Bell]

50. nothing in a casual discussion.... agree there.

[lunatica]

13. "She wanted me to rip off her clothes, Your Honor"

"See Your Honor, I'm quite a catch. A feather in their cap so to speak"

[joshcryer]

14. We'll know if this is their defense in a day or so.

If it is they may be going to try to play the "he was his mistress" game. Hard to prove or disprove. Except she's apparently a devout Muslim and you probably aren't going to find pictures of her half naked dancing on a poll. So character assassination won't work.

[whathehell]

29. "hard to prove or disprove"....She just met him!. n/t

[joshcryer]

30. There was someone here implying that she was his mistress because he went to that same hotel...

...6 times last year. I'm saying that generally that sort of defense is used in rape cases (mistress / girlfriend / lover / etc). And when it's used the poor rape victim must undergo a character assassination, which is hard to prove either way (though if you can get fundies on a jury you you a better chance disproving it). The victim in this case is not going to be so easily used in that tactic, if they go that route.

[whathehell]

35. I agree wholeheartedly. n/t

[truthisfreedom]

16. It's bizarre how many times these stories can change via different sources as the days go by.

I'd imagine no matter the outcome, he's not going to be president.

[joshcryer]

21. I hate breaking news stories, they are never ever correct.

Just last night there was a murder-suicide that started out as a hostage situation and my mom was calling me every hour telling me about it. Apparently once the police were able to bust in to the house it turned out there was http://www.krdo.com/news/27913842/detail.html">never a hostage situation. My mom was so upset about the end of that one. :(

[jberryhill]

34. It's the competitive nature of news gathering in developing situations

All kinds of rumor and speculation is reported in connection with any breaking/developing story.

It provides endless fodder for people who have some sort of cognitive issues around "the written word" or "something printed in a newspaper" as if it came down from Mt. Sinai on stone tablets.

You've also almost always got people who find themselves in the midst of a situation who tell reporters all kinds things in order to feel important.

[whathehell]

26. Yes, I'm sure it was consensual...I mean, what married, thirty two year old mother

wouldn't be interested in sucking the dick of a fat old man she happened to "meet"

while cleaning his room?

I don't think so.:eyes:

[Dash87]

33. Oh yeah, so realistic!

The first thing women want to do when they see a nasty, fat old guy is to unzip is fly and blow him. Doing it at work and suddenly, and then saying that it was rape makes it all more likely that this was consensual! Think about it! :sarcasm:

I wouldn't doubt they have either threatened her, will try to "suicide" her, or are trying to pay her to make this go away.

[whathehell]

36. Yes...Isn't it?

:rofl:

I do hope that "they", his minions or whatever,

haven't and will not do any of the things you mentioned.:scared:

[Dappleganger]

38. What a pig.

Changing the story has now convinced me that he's guilty as can be and I hope he gets crotch rot in jail.

[thereismore]

40. That's because they know now that there is DNA evidence. nt

[sufrommich]

41. And security video. nt

[cliss]

53. Security video?

Just curious: do hotels have video cameras in the hotel rooms??????

That seems illegal to me.
Of course in the case of this pig, it would be great if they could just show a little "video clip" for the jurors when the trial starts. But I still don't approve of it.:smoke:

[sufrommich]

64. I meant the security cameras in the lobby. It would prove

what time he actually left the hotel.

I think it would be illegal to have them in rooms, at least I hope it is.

[LeftishBrit]

42. This makes it more likely that he's guilty IMO

I was reserving my judgment because he has many nasty and powerful enemies; but changing the story like that makes it more dubious on his part. It's always dodgy when they say 'it was consensual' AFTER beginning with another excuse.

[oberliner]

45. Please be aware that it is very likely that this story is BS

The source is a very right-wing tabloid that is not known for its journalistic integrity.

The reporting here is very shoddy and is based almost entirely on an unnamed anonymous source.

No one is on the record as making any claim about anything being consensual.

[LeftishBrit]

48. Thanks for info. Sounds like the Daily Mail in the UK!

[Odin2005]

46. Go fuck yourself, Dominic.

[AtomicKitten]

47. consent a euphemism for "she was asking for it"

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

49. His lawyer didn't say anything of the sort

The quoted statement "The evidence, we believe, will not be consistent with a forcible encounter," is not an acknowledgment that something actually occurred it is verbose language dismissing the claim without using the words sexual assault or rape. I spend all day, every day with lawyers - it is just how they talk.

The post is taking the statement out of context, this would have been seized upon yesterday by all if that is what had actually been said.

A source close to the defense later told The Post, "There may well have been consent."

I don't know what happened, I think the guy is a douchebag. But i'm not going to make a judgment based on contradictory and often nonsensical media reports. And especially not anonymous sources quoted or invented by the NY Post!

[oberliner]

52. The New York Post should not be taken seriously

Thank you for this post.

[Prometheus Bound]

55. To me that lawyer's sentence is what the NY Post is saying.

"The evidence, we believe, will not be consistent with a forcible encounter."

The implication is that something happened, but no force was used.

Rewording:
1. "We believe the evidence will show there was no forcible encounter."
2. "We believe the evidence will show the encounter did not involve force."

They are not denying that there was an encounter. If there were no sexual encounter they would have said so.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

59. And rewording changes the meaning

They have denied the charges and claim their client has an alibi, that is their position. All else is the media re-spining the old story into a new one. With the ever helpful unnamed source.

I was in a situation involving a high profile bankruptcy and I was interviewed by a newspaper reporter. 99% of the discussion was explaining personal bankruptcy to the reporter. The subject turned to adversarial proceedings which is the circumstance in which a creditor is either alleging fraud or arguing against the debtors discharge. The reporter asked me if he could quote me as saying the bankrupt celebrity was being accused of fraud. I had said nothing of the sort - I was just explaining the process. So rather than quoting me as myself the exact same statement I refused to have attributed to me became the statement of "a noted expert on bankruptcy who would not speak on the record" and presto - new story. Celebrity being accused of bankruptcy fraud.

[Prometheus Bound]

63. No my rewording does not change the meaning. His implication is clear.

I'm not clear on why you're ignoring it though.

[boppers]

56. Ah yes, the language of law.

"The evidence, we believe, will not be consistent with a forcible encounter" does not deny an encounter, or even deny a forcible encounter.... merely that they do not believe that there is any *evidence* of a forcible encounter, such as a weapon found on the scene, or a medical report involving defensive wounds.

[fedsron2us]

61. Well for all its faults I prefer justice to be meted out through due process of law

conducted in open court before a judge and jury where all the evidence can be considered rather than by trial by media quoting anonymous sources or on internet discussion boards. Obviously it is a hopelessly outdated idea in an online world that wants the whole process wrapped up in 48 hours so it can move onto something new.

[DCBob]

54. Yeah, what happened to the "ironclad alibi" ??

This jerk is guilty.

[Matariki]

57. I thought his lawyer was saying he was checked out at the time.

Now they're saying it was consensual? Ha.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

62. His lawyer hasn't said anything of the sort of anything since yesterday

[Princess Turandot]

58. The NYT is now reporting this..

still as an 'indication' of a possible defense, in reference to the defense attorney's remarks in court. (They are not quoting the NY Post.)

Mr. Brafman did not disclose what forensic evidence he was referring to, or even if he had been apprised about what forensic evidence the prosecution had collected. Even so, that statement seemed to suggest the defense may acknowledge that a sexual encounter had occurred.

Indeed, on Tuesday, a person briefed on the case said the defense believed that any sex act may have been consensual.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/18/nyregion/strauss-kahn-may-claim-consensual-sex-as-defense.html

[DeSwiss]

60. Of course. He's totally so hot. Who could resist!?!?

- Let the man go! The women of the world implore you to let this sexy beast be god's gift to women he was intended to be!!!

K&R

[truthisfreedom]

65. No matter what the truth is, I'm going to make my prediction right now:

He's got less than a one in one billion chance of being elected at this point.

Oh, wait, I'm an American.

[rayofreason]

66. IMF chief tried to fuck maid after mistaking her for a small financially crippled country

IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn has claimed he only tried to fuck a New York maid because he thought she was a small Caribbean island in financial difficulty.

Mr Strauss-Kahn was remanded in custody in a New York jail despite protesting his arrest was merely the result of a case of mistaken identity.

An IMF spokesperson explained, “Forcing our engorged corporate genitals into the tiny crevices of small financially suffering countries is what the IMF is all about.”



http://newsthump.com/2011/05/17/imf-chief-tried-to-fuck-maid-after-mistaking-her-for-a-small-financially-crippled-country/