Strauss-Kahn Accuser Wants Special Prosecutor

Lawyers for a hotel maid who accused former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault asked a state court on Monday to appoint a special prosecutor to take over the criminal case against him.

The Manhattan district attorney's office is expected to request at a hearing on Tuesday that the criminal charges against Strauss-Kahn be dismissed, according to a person familiar with the matter. Prosecutors made the decision after serious questions were raised about the maid's credibility, the person said.

Prosecutors are expected to meet with the maid, Nafissatou Diallo, and her lawyers later Monday to inform them of the decision. Diallo, 33, has alleged she was sexually assaulted by Strauss-Kahn, 62, in his suite at the Sofitel hotel in Manhattan on May 14.

"Because of the DA's actions, abuse of confidence, unfair treatment, bias and prejudices, the DA is unfit to try this case," Diallo's lawyers, Kenneth Thompson and Douglas Wigdor, said in court papers Monday.

Strauss-Kahn was charged in a seven-count indictment in May with criminal sexual assault in the first degree, sexual abuse in the first degree, forcible touching and other charges. He has pleaded not guilty.

As part of their motion Monday, Diallo's lawyers asked that the court issue a preliminary injunction staying any further prosecution of the case until a decision is made on their motion.

Diallo's lawyers claim Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr.'s office appears to have leaked "false information to the press that may have irreparably damaged their client's credibility" and severely undermined the criminal case, namely details about jailhouse conversations she had with a man incarcerated in a federal immigration detention center soon after the alleged assault.

It was unclear how quickly there might be a ruling on the motion.Read more: WSJ