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Dominique Strauss-Kahn's Lawyers Ask Judge to Dismiss Accuser's Civil Case

By DNAinfo Staff on September 26, 2011 7:43pm

Strauss-Kahn at a recent court appearance.
Strauss-Kahn at a recent court appearance.
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Pool photo by Richard Drew

MANHATTAN — Lawyers for Dominique Strauss-Kahn filed a motion Monday to dismiss the civil lawsuit brought by a hotel maid accusing the former International Monetary Fund chief of sexually assaulting her in May.

The case should not go forward because the 32-year-old Sofitel maid, Nafissatou Diallo, "cannot prove she was sexually assaulted," Strauss-Kahn's lawyers said. They argued that if the case were to go to trial in Bronx Surpreme Court, where the suit was filed, evidence would ultimately show that "the parties' conduct was consensual."

The attorneys also asked that if the case moves forward, the judge preclude any mention of past allegations of sexual impropriety on the part of Strauss-Kahn, most notably that of French writer Tristane Banon, who said he tried to rape her in 2003 but did not come forward until after Diallo's accusations.

Nafissatou Diallo, left, the hotel maid who accused former IMF director Dominique Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault, stands with her attorney Kenneth Thompson after a meeting at the Manhattan District Attorney's office on August 22, 2011.
Nafissatou Diallo, left, the hotel maid who accused former IMF director Dominique Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault, stands with her attorney Kenneth Thompson after a meeting at the Manhattan District Attorney's office on August 22, 2011.
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Mario Tama/Getty Images

"The allegations are nothing more than an attempt to embarrass Mr. Strauss-Kahn, open the door to harassing and irrelevant discovery, and ultimately instill undue prejudice in the jury," Strauss-Kahn's lawyers, William Taylor, Shawn Naunton and Amit Mehta, wrote in court papers.

Prosecutors requested and were granted a dismissal of the sexual assault case against Strauss-Kahn on Aug. 23, explaining Diallo had changed her account of what she said happened to her in the Midtown hotel suite, and also that she fabricated a different story about the incident and lied about other things in her past.

Diallo's attorney, Kenneth Thompson, repeatedly said that she was always truthful about the alleged forced encounter with Strauss-Kahn on May 14.

Diallo is suing Strauss-Kahn for an unspecified amount.