Strauss-Kahn Will Plead Not Guilty

Should he decide to fight the sex-related charges, the former head of the IMF will get a very public hearing over the explosive allegations.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn is to plead not guilty in a New York courtroom today to charges that include attempted rape, sex abuse, and unlawful imprisonment. Strauss-Kahn, 62, who was the managing director of the International Monetary Fund until the charges were laid, intends to fight the allegations in a court battle that will garner plenty of attention from both sides of the Atlantic. A 32-year-old chambermaid who had immigrated from Nigeria to the U.S. alleges that on May 14, Strauss-Kahn held her against her will and then sexually assaulted her as she tried to clean the $3,000-a-night New York hotel room in which he was staying. Strauss-Kahn posted bail shortly after his arrest and has spent the intervening time living in a well-appointed Tribeca apartment valued at $14 million.