You know this is just a "he said she said" thing right now and he will never be convicted on the charges laid.
However it effectively ended his career unless he can prove beyond a shadow of a doubt the maid lied.
More than likely he will go home and retire from life after the trial.
Dominique Strauss-Kahn bailed for $1m and ordered to face sex trial
Dominique Strauss-Kahn was bailed for $1 million on Thursday night, after agreeing to live under house arrest with his wife at a New York flat, where he will be watched around the clock by an armed guard.
By Jon Swaine, New York 12:01AM BST 20 May 2011
Mr Strauss-Kahn secured his release from Rikers Island prison as it was announced a grand jury had voted to have him prosecuted for the alleged sexual attack of a 32-year-old maid in his hotel room.
In a hearing at New York supreme court, Judge Michael Obus said he would allow the 62-year-old former head of the IMF out of jail despite the fact there was a "serious risk" he would try to flee.
He warned Mr Strauss-Kahn, who was arrested at JFK airport on a flight about to take off for Paris, that the consequences would be serious "if there is the slightest problem with your compliance".
Watched by his wife Anne Sinclair, 62, who held the hand of his daughter Camille, 26, Mr Strauss-Kahn showed little sign of emotion as the judge delivered his verdict.
He must move into an apartment in Manhattan rented by his wife, and "will be monitored 24 hours, seven days a week, electronically and by at least one armed guard", the judge said.
He will pay $1 million (£600,000) upfront, provide a guarantee for a further $5 million (£3 million), and cover the expense of his own security, which was estimated at $200,000 (£120,000) a week and include an armed guard at all times.
A local security company has been recruited to provide guards, while alarms and video recording equipment will be installed. He must also wear an electronic ankle bracelet so he can be tracked.
Mr Strauss-Kahn was remanded in custody on Monday after a judge in a lower court found it was too risky that he would try to flee to France, which refuses to extradite its citizens to other countries.
But Mr Strauss-Kahn's attorney, Bill Taylor, said his client – "an honourable man" – was now one of the world's most recognisable figures, and "has only one interest at this time, and that is to clear his name".
"The prospect of Mr Strauss-Kahn teleporting himself to France and living there as an accused sex offender, as a fugitive, is ludicrous," he said He rejected "the notion of Mr Strauss-Kahn, in panic mode, making his way to a flight at JFK to avoid detention in New York", noting that he twice called the hotel to report a mobile phone he had left behind.
For the prosecution, John McConnell, an assistant district attorney, said Mr Strauss-Kahn remained an "existential flight risk" with "the personal, political and financial means" to escape.
"This is a man who, by his own conduct in this case, has shown a propensity for impulsive criminal conduct", said Mr McConnell, dismissing the electronic monitoring offer as "a bracelet and a battery".
"He has the stature and the resources not to be a fugitive on the run, but to live a life of ease in parts of the world that are beyond this court, and this country's, jurisdiction," he said.
The prosecutor added that "while the investigation is still in its early stages, the proof against him is substantial and continuing to grow every day".
"The victim has given a compelling and unwavering story about what happened in the defendant's room," he said, and the results of a "complete and expert examination" of the maid backed up her story.
Judge Obus acknowledged: "If the defendant were able to leave the country, it might very well be impossible to get him back," but was in the end convinced of the defence attorney's proposals.
The decision came after it was announced Mr Strauss-Kahn would be prosecuted for seven crimes, including criminal sexual acts and attempted rape, during Saturday's alleged assault at the hotel.
He is accused of unlawfully imprisoning the maid, a Guinean widow with a 15-year-old daughter, and forcing her to perform a sex act on him when his attempts at rape were unsuccessful. He denies the charges.
Mr Strauss-Kahn was last night due to spend a final night in Rikers before the terms of bail were met tomorrow morning. A hearing, which he will not attend, will be held to finalise the conditions.
telegraph.co.uk |
