This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/03/world/europe/prostitution-trial-begins-for-dominique-strauss-kahn.html
The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Trial to Begin for Dominique Strauss-Kahn in Prostitution Case | Trial to Begin for Dominique Strauss-Kahn in Prostitution Case |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| PARIS — Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the International Monetary Fund, is to stand trial on Monday on accusations that he participated in a prostitution ring that extended from the north of France to Brussels, Washington and New York. | PARIS — Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the International Monetary Fund, is to stand trial on Monday on accusations that he participated in a prostitution ring that extended from the north of France to Brussels, Washington and New York. |
| In a case that has riveted France, Mr. Strauss-Kahn, 65, who was once seen as a presidential contender, stands accused in Lille, France, with 13 other defendants, including Dominique Alderweireld, a sex club owner known as Dodo la Saumure. Mr. Strauss-Kahn, a silver-haired economist, is charged with “aggravated procurement in a group,” or pimping, and using his subordinates to obtain prostitutes for lavish sex parties. | In a case that has riveted France, Mr. Strauss-Kahn, 65, who was once seen as a presidential contender, stands accused in Lille, France, with 13 other defendants, including Dominique Alderweireld, a sex club owner known as Dodo la Saumure. Mr. Strauss-Kahn, a silver-haired economist, is charged with “aggravated procurement in a group,” or pimping, and using his subordinates to obtain prostitutes for lavish sex parties. |
| In addition to shining a spotlight on a clandestine world of Champagne-fueled sex parties that prosecutors say were attended by lawyers, judges, police officials, journalists and musicians, the case is also spurring debate about sexual morality in France and the extent to which the private lives of public figures should remain private. | In addition to shining a spotlight on a clandestine world of Champagne-fueled sex parties that prosecutors say were attended by lawyers, judges, police officials, journalists and musicians, the case is also spurring debate about sexual morality in France and the extent to which the private lives of public figures should remain private. |
| In France, having sex with prostitutes is not illegal, but soliciting and pimping are against the law. | |
| Mr. Strauss-Kahn has acknowledged being present at sex parties but he has vehemently denied the charges he faces in Lille and has said that he was not aware that some of the women present were prostitutes. His defenders say that the prosecution is seeking to criminalize sexual ardor, and that Mr. Strauss-Kahn is the victim of a puritanical, politically motivated witch hunt. Moreover, they argue that sex parties reflect a long tradition of libertinage, and that consensual sex between multiple partners behind closed doors is a matter of private taste and morals. | Mr. Strauss-Kahn has acknowledged being present at sex parties but he has vehemently denied the charges he faces in Lille and has said that he was not aware that some of the women present were prostitutes. His defenders say that the prosecution is seeking to criminalize sexual ardor, and that Mr. Strauss-Kahn is the victim of a puritanical, politically motivated witch hunt. Moreover, they argue that sex parties reflect a long tradition of libertinage, and that consensual sex between multiple partners behind closed doors is a matter of private taste and morals. |
| Mr. Strauss-Kahn resigned as head of the International Monetary Fund in 2011 after he was accused of sexually assaulting a housekeeper at a hotel in New York. The charges were later dropped. He has since been seeking to rehabilitate himself, working as a consultant, lecturing and advising foreign countries as well as large companies in Russia, Africa and Latin America, among other places. | Mr. Strauss-Kahn resigned as head of the International Monetary Fund in 2011 after he was accused of sexually assaulting a housekeeper at a hotel in New York. The charges were later dropped. He has since been seeking to rehabilitate himself, working as a consultant, lecturing and advising foreign countries as well as large companies in Russia, Africa and Latin America, among other places. |
| Prosecutors say exclusive orgies were organized in major world cities by businessmen who were seeking favor with Mr. Strauss-Kahn, and that their money was used to finance prostitutes, including for Mr. Strauss-Kahn, who sometimes sought out sex with several partners in one evening. | |
| Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s name first appeared in the Lille inquiry by chance, in May 2011. French investigators had wiretapped the phone of Mr. Alderweireld. | Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s name first appeared in the Lille inquiry by chance, in May 2011. French investigators had wiretapped the phone of Mr. Alderweireld. |
| If convicted, Mr. Strauss-Kahn could face up to 10 years in prison and fines of more than 1.5 million euros, or $1.7 million. | If convicted, Mr. Strauss-Kahn could face up to 10 years in prison and fines of more than 1.5 million euros, or $1.7 million. |
| Didier Specq, a veteran court reporter, who has written a book about the case, said that while the trial was a blow to Mr. Strauss-Kahn, the former I.M.F. chief could emerge emboldened if found innocent. He said Mr. Strasuss-Kahn was still popular among some French people, who, he said, considered the sexual choices of their politicians to be a private matter. “Morally, he will take a hit,” Mr. Specq said. “But after a few weeks of this trial, people will realize that the evidence against him is thin. It will raise questions as to whether the case was politically motivated. The French are not obsessed by the sexual transgressions of their politicians.” |