New York (CNN) -- Agreeing with prosecutors' assertions that he is a flight risk, a judge Monday denied bail to International Monetary Fund head Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who is charged with chasing a hotel employee down the hall of his New York hotel suite and sexually assaulting her.
"The fact that he was about to board a flight, that raises some concerns," said Criminal Court Judge Melissa Jackson.
Strauss-Kahn is next set to appear in court May 20.
Prosecutors had argued against bail, saying they believe Strauss-Kahn has engaged in "similar acts" at least once and that there would be nothing to prevent him from returning to France and living "open and notoriously" like film director Roman Polanski.
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Who is Dominique Strauss-Kahn? Prosecutors detailed a laundry list of charges against him including two counts of first-degree criminal sexual act; one count of first-degree attempted rape; one count of first-degree sexual abuse; one count of second-degree unlawful imprisonment; one count of forcible touching; and one count of third-degree sexual abuse.
Defense attorneys noted Strauss-Kahn's lack of a criminal record and said he would be prepared to stay with his daughter in New York if released on bail. They suggested a bail amount of $1 million.
But, Jackson told Strauss-Kahn defense attorney Benjamin Brafman, "The same rules apply to your defendant as all defendants, and I am a fair judge."
Strauss-Kahn's arraignment was delayed a day after he agreed to forensic testing requested by police, said another of his attorneys, William Taylor. Brafman vowed Sunday to vigorously defend him in court, insisting his client is innocent.
Police allege Strauss-Kahn sexually assaulted the 32-year-old woman Saturday at the Sofitel hotel in Manhattan and then quickly headed off to a New York airport to board a Paris-bound flight.
The arrest of the 62-year-old, widely considered a leading potential candidate for the French presidency, has triggered intense political chatter across the Atlantic. In France, it delivered what the Paris newspaper Le Figaro called a "thunderclap" to the presidential race. The allegations also triggered disappointment within Strauss-Kahn's Socialist party; some at the party's headquarters were in tears Monday.
Sources : cnn.com
"The fact that he was about to board a flight, that raises some concerns," said Criminal Court Judge Melissa Jackson.
Strauss-Kahn is next set to appear in court May 20.
Prosecutors had argued against bail, saying they believe Strauss-Kahn has engaged in "similar acts" at least once and that there would be nothing to prevent him from returning to France and living "open and notoriously" like film director Roman Polanski.
Toobin: IMF head could get long sentence IMF head's arrest a bombshell in France IMF boss arrest overshadows debt talks Who is Dominique Strauss-Kahn? Defense attorneys noted Strauss-Kahn's lack of a criminal record and said he would be prepared to stay with his daughter in New York if released on bail. They suggested a bail amount of $1 million.
But, Jackson told Strauss-Kahn defense attorney Benjamin Brafman, "The same rules apply to your defendant as all defendants, and I am a fair judge."
Strauss-Kahn's arraignment was delayed a day after he agreed to forensic testing requested by police, said another of his attorneys, William Taylor. Brafman vowed Sunday to vigorously defend him in court, insisting his client is innocent.
Police allege Strauss-Kahn sexually assaulted the 32-year-old woman Saturday at the Sofitel hotel in Manhattan and then quickly headed off to a New York airport to board a Paris-bound flight.
The arrest of the 62-year-old, widely considered a leading potential candidate for the French presidency, has triggered intense political chatter across the Atlantic. In France, it delivered what the Paris newspaper Le Figaro called a "thunderclap" to the presidential race. The allegations also triggered disappointment within Strauss-Kahn's Socialist party; some at the party's headquarters were in tears Monday.
Sources : cnn.com
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