Arrest of IMF Chief on Attempted Rape Charges Throws French Presidential Race Into Chaos (Time.com)

The news of the arrest of IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn, 62, was shocking in its own right: late Saturday afternoon, Port Authority police took Strauss-Kahn from the First Class cabin of an Air France flight at Kennedy Airport about to depart for Paris amid allegations he attempted to rape a midtown Manhattan hotel maid earlier in the day. But considering the fact that the former French finance minister Strauss-Kahn was widely expected to run against President Nicolas Sarkozy next year, the turn of events was particularly stunning.

In fact DSK, as the French call one of the country's leading political figures, happens to be on the cover of virtually every French magazine this week as the country's possible next President, and several have recently featured photos of him with his wife Anne Sinclair, a U.S.-born veteran French television journalist. So it didn't take long for the news, which broke at about 2 a.m. Paris time, to throw next May's French presidential race into upheaval by quite possibly removing the only candidate clearly capable of beating Sarkozy. (See a brief history of the IMF.)

On Sunday French liberal politicians urged people not to rush to judgment. Strauss-Kahn's close associate and spokesman Jean-Marie le Guen, told Europe 1 radio that "this episode does not resemble the Dominique Strauss-Kahn I know." SEgolEne Royal, who beat out Strauss-Kahn for the party nomination in 2006 beore her poorly-run presidential race was blamed for having buried the Socialists' chances, said on Sunday that "there must be a presumption of innocence."

The New York Police Department claims that at about 1 p.m. on Saturday, a hotel maid entered a $3,000-a-night suite at the Sofitel near Times Square, believing that it was empty. Strauss-Kahn then emerged naked from the bathroom, and grabbed her, pulled her into the bedroom and threw her on to the bed, before trying to lock the suite's main door, according to New York Police Dept. Deputy Commissioner Paul Browne, who outlined the charges to reporters. "She fights him off, and then he drags her down the hallway to the bathroom, where he sexually assaults her a second time," he told Reuters.

The maid, 32, finally managed to push Strauss-Kahn away and escape, according to Browne, and her colleagues called 911. Strauss-Kahn had checked out by the time police arrived at the hotel, leaving behind his cell phone. Strauss-Kahn was arrested on charges of attempted rape, conducting a criminal sexual act, and unlawful imprisonment of the woman. Early Sunday, Strauss-Kahn's lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, told Reuters his client, who was still in NYPD custody and was expected to appear in state court sometime Sunday, would plead not guilty. (See how Strauss-Kahn has helped save Europe's troubled economies.)

For Strauss-Kahn's Socialist Party, the timing could hardly have been worse. After years in the political wilderness, the party is getting set to nominate its contender, and in Strauss-Kahn, it appeared to have finally found a winner. Recent French opinion polls put him far ahead of Sarkozy in next year's race. The recent photos of Strauss-Kahn's high-altitude lifestyle - which this week included him stepping out of a Porsche - has provoked discomfort among many French leftists, who feared that he was too rich and privileged to appeal to their traditional working-class base. Yet even that appeared to be little political obstacle to Strauss-Kahn, who had seemed to have a solid chance of victory.

The ramifications of Strauss-Kahn's arrest extend way beyond the gilded government palaces in Paris, however.

In Washington, it could raise questions about why the IMF gave him a free pass in 2008 after he began an affair with a Hungarian economist, who was his subordinate at the organization. While concluding he had shown poor judgment, the IMF decided not to censure or remove Strauss-Kahn, at a time when the world faced the deepest financial crisis since the Great Depression; for his part, Strauss-Kahn issued a statement declaring that "I am grateful that the board has confirmed that there was no abuse of authority on my part, but I accept that this incident represents a serious error of judgment." (See Strauss-Kahn's alleged 2008 abuses of power.)

Since then, Strauss-Kahn has won praise for his handling of the global meltdown. This time, however, IMF officials have immediately distanced themselves from their chief. A two-sentence IMF statement on Sunday said that Strauss-Kahn's arrest was a matter for the NYPD and his personal attorney, and that the organization "remains fully functioning and operational." Nonetheless, the IMF could face an internal crisis now, since Strauss-Kahn's deputy, John Lipsky, announced last Thursday that he was leaving the organization in August.

Across Europe, too, Strauss-Kahn's arrest will have a major impact. It could impact critical negotiations over the E.U.'s deep debt crisis, in which Strauss-Kahn has been a key - if not the key - player. He was due to be at emergency debt meetings in Brussels this week, and perhaps mindful that he could soon be one of the E.U.'s most powerful leaders, as French President, he has cautioned for months against harsh austerity measures for debt-ridden countries Portugal and Greece.

That now seems like a comparatively simple challenge. Rather than fighting to move into the Elysee Palace, Strauss-Kahn suddenly will have to fight to keep himself out of jail, perhaps for years.

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Lawyer: IMF head charged over alleged attempted rape

Dominique Strauss-Kahn became the IMF's 10th managing director in November 2007.NEW: Police: Detectives arrest Dominique Strauss-Kahn on Sunday morning Police say Strauss-Kahn was naked when he tried to forced himself on a N.Y. hotel employeeThe hotel employee escaped, and police took Strauss-Kahn off a Paris-bound flightStrauss-Kahn did well in polls of possible French presidential candidates

New York (CNN) -- The head of the International Monetary Fund was arrested early Sunday in connection with an alleged sexual assault of a New York hotel housekeeping employee, police said.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn, 62, has been charged with criminal sexual act, attempted rape and unlawful imprisonment, his attorney Benjamin Brafman said in an e-mail early Sunday.

New York Deputy Police Commissioner Paul Browne said detectives formally arrested Strauss-Kahn at 2:15 a.m.

Police pulled Strauss-Kahn off an Air France flight destined for Paris at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Saturday after the alleged incident, according to Browne.

He was taken into custody and brought to a Manhattan police station for questioning, Browne said.

Hours earlier, Browne said, Strauss-Kahn emerged naked when the 32-year-old hotel employee entered his room to clean it around 1 p.m. Saturday at the Sofitel hotel.

The housekeeping employee said she didn't think anyone was in the luxury $3,000-a-night suite when she entered, Browne said Sunday morning.

Browne said Strauss-Kahn ran after her down the hallway of the suite. The suite has its own foyer, hallway, living room, bathroom, conference room and bedroom.

The woman said Strauss-Kahn pulled her into a bedroom and started attacking her.

She fought him off, she told investigators, but Strauss-Kahn then dragged her into the bathroom and forced himself on her. Police said Strauss-Kahn tried to remove her underwear, but the woman got away.

The employee ran to the front desk, Browne said. Hotel staff alerted the New York Police Department.

By the time officers arrived, Strauss-Kahn had left, leaving his cell phone behind at the hotel, according to Browne.

"He left in a hurry," Browne said. "The alleged victim was taken to Roosevelt Hospital (in Manhattan) and was treated for minor injuries," Browne said.

Authorities learned the IMF head was on an outbound flight at Kennedy airport. New York police asked their counterparts at the Port Authority to hold the plane.

Two plain-clothes Port Authority police detectives boarded the aircraft "just before the door closed" on the flight, and found Strauss-Kahn seated in first class, said a law enforcement official who had been briefed on the investigation.

He "offered no resistance" when he was led off the plane, after which he was turned over to New York police, the official said.

The hotel is cooperating with authorities, said John Sheehan, the hotel's director of safety and security.

"We're taking this matter extremely serious, as it's developing," Sheehan said.

A former French finance minister, national legislator and economics professor in Paris, Strauss-Kahn became the IMF's 10th managing director in November 2007. He is also chairman of the IMF executive board.

While Strauss-Kahn hadn't officially entered the race, recent French opinion polls showed him leading prospective Socialist Party presidential candidates.

The surveys suggested he could pose a challenge to incumbent French President Nicolas Sarkozy in the 2012 election.

The IMF, based in Washington, is a major world player in economic inequalities and crises.

Strauss-Kahn became embroiled in controversy soon after joining the IMF, amid reports -- which he later acknowledged -- that he'd had an improper relationship with a female employee. The physical relationship was consensual, an independent inquiry found.

The world body's executive board concluded in October 2008 that "there was no harassment, favoritism or any other abuse of authority by the managing director."

"Nevertheless, the executive board noted that the incident was regrettable and reflected a serious error of judgment on the part of the managing director, as he has acknowledged and for which he has apologized," the IMF said in a statement at the time.

Strauss-Kahn also issued a statement following the closing of the investigation, noting that he'd "apologized for it to the (board of directors), to the staff of the IMF and to my family," as well as "the staff member."

"I agree with the board that the personal behavior of the managing director sets an important tone for the institution and I am committed, going forward, to uphold the high standards that are expected of this position," he said in the statement.

CNN's Miguel Susana, Rick Martin and Ross Levitt contributed to this report.

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17 die in attempted Iraq prison break

BAGHDAD — The man accused of masterminding an attack on a Baghdad church last year wrestled a gun from a guard at a detention facility, freed his comrades and launched an hours-long assault that ended with 17 people dead, including a top counterterrorism officer, officials and witnesses said.

var data = blocks.columnist;if (data != undefined){document.getElementById('columnistmug').innerHTML=data;} By Karim Kadim, AP

Relatives of Brigadier Muaeid Mohammed Saleh load his coffin onto a vehicle during his funeral in Baghdad on Sunday, He was slain in an inmate uprising.

By Karim Kadim, AP

Relatives of Brigadier Muaeid Mohammed Saleh load his coffin onto a vehicle during his funeral in Baghdad on Sunday, He was slain in an inmate uprising.

Abu Huthaifa al-Battawi, the man accused by authorities of plotting the October attack on an Iraqi church killing 68 people, nearly drove out of Baghdad's Ministry of Interior with fellow inmates before being gunned down by guards.

The melee at the sprawling compound raises questions about how a group of prisoners at what is supposed to be one of the most secure facilities in the country managed to launch such a fierce attack.

The detainees, all accused of belonging to al-Qaida in Iraq, were being moved from a detention room to an interrogation room at the ministry grounds in eastern Baghdad when one of the detainees attacked a guard and wrestled away his weapon, said Maj. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi, the top military spokesman in Baghdad.

Two interior ministry officials said it was al-Battawi who launched the attack. One official said al-Battawi's hands had just been untied for his interrogation when he grabbed the weapon.

The detainee killed the guard, moved into one of the rooms and killed another guard and took his weapon, al-Moussawi said. In all, the detainees managed to seize four weapons including an assault rifle.

An Iraqi lawmaker on the security and defense committee, Hakim al-Zamili, said they also managed to get their hands on grenades.

The prisoners then entered the office of Brigadier Muaeid Mohammed Saleh, the head of a department responsible for combating terrorism and organized crime in eastern Baghdad, and shot him along with another officer who was in the room.

"I was in the next room close to Brigadier Muaeid's room and I heard shots fired and screams in the corridor. I opened the door and saw about four al-Qaida detainees moving around and I closed the door back immediately," said Saleh's bodyguard, Jawad Kadhum.

"Then I heard one of them saying 'This is the director's room,' and I heard a flurry of gunshots," he said.

Al-Moussawi said the assault by the prisoners was not spontaneous but appeared to have been plotted ahead of time. He said six police and 11 detainees were killed in the ensuing melee which lasted for nearly three hours before Iraqi security forces brought the situation under control.

A group of the detainees, including al-Battawi, managed to seize a car and were driving toward the gate of the compound when a guard opened killed them with a machine gun, al-Zamili said.

Al-Moussawi said the detainees were not shackled at the time, which is normal procedure except that since they were accused of being involved in al-Qaida, they should have been restrained.

"I blame the security measures in this case because they were senior terrorists," he said. "Tight security measures should have been taken."

An Interior Ministry official on the scene said the guards violated procedure by keeping their weapons with them when moving the prisoners. Usually when prisoners are taken into the investigation room their restraints are removed but guards are not supposed to have their weapons on them at the time.

The official said about 20 to 25 prisoners were involved in the melee.

An additional eight police officers and six detainees were wounded, security and hospital officials said.

The injured detainees were brought to Baghdad's al-Kindi hospital under tight security, treated and then taken away again by security officials to an unidentified location, officials said.

All the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

It is the latest embarrassing incident for Iraq related to its detention facilities.

In January, 12 inmates, many believed to have links to al-Qaida in Iraq, were awaiting trial in a temporary detention center in the southern city of Basra when they obtained uniforms and walked out in disguise. They scattered after that to avoid the massive manhunt. At least two were later picked up by security officials in northern Iraq.

Sunday's prison attack immediately led to cries of outrage over how such an incident could have happened.

"The Interior Ministry lets large number of dangerous terrorist leaders gather in one cell without any means of surveillance such as cameras and this makes them free to plot and even give orders to people outside to carry out attacks through mobiles smuggled to them in the prison," al-Zamili said.

——

Associated Press writers Saad Abdul-Kadir in Baghdad and Sameer N. Yacoub in Amman, Jordan contributed to this report.

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Suspect in attempted MLK Day bombing accused of hate crime

Kevin Harpham is charged with a hate crime in connection with the attempted bombing of an MLK Day parade. STORY HIGHLIGHTSWashington state man indicted by federal grand juryKevin Harpham is suspected in attempted bombing of MLK Jr. paradeHe pleaded not guilty to two previous chargesRELATED TOPICSHate CrimesSpokaneU.S. Department of Justice (CNN) -- A superseding indictment in the attempted bombing of a Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in Washington state accuses the suspect of a hate crime, the U.S. Justice Department said Thursday.

Kevin Harpham, 36, of Colville, Washington, last month pleaded not guilty in federal court to attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and for possessing an unregistered explosive device.

The new indictment has two additional charges, including an allegation he planted the improvised explosive device "because of actual or perceived race, color, and national origin" of march participants, the department said in a statement.

Federal authorities arrested Harpham March 9, nearly two months after the January 17 discovery of a backpack containing a bomb along the Martin Luther King Day parade route in Spokane, Washington. The device was disabled before the event began.

Officials called it an incident "of domestic terrorism" that could have resulted in "mass casualties," had the bomb gone off.

FBI: Bomb could have been "pretty lethal"

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which monitors extremist groups, Harpham frequently posted incendiary comments on white supremacist websites.

In 2004, according to the Poverty Law Center, Harpham allegedly stated, "I can't wait till the day I snap," in a posting on the white supremacist website the Vanguard News Network.

Harpham also allegedly wrote, "Those who say you can't win a war by bombing have never tried," according to the SPLC, which attributed more than a thousand postings to the accused would-be bomber on the Vanguard website.

Vanguard advertises itself on the site as "No Jews. Just Right."

Although the posts did not carry Harpham's name directly, Law Center officials said they had come to know him by his writing, and recognized his work as it appeared online.

CNN's Patrick Oppmann contributed to this report.

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Lawyer for mother guilty of attempted murder says system failed her

By the CNN Wire Staff STORY HIGHLIGHTSAttorney Kevin James says his client did not intentionally withhold medication"Certainly there was no motive in this case," he saysKristen LaBrie was found guilty of attempted murderJames says she was allowed to slip through the cracksRELATED TOPICSMassachusetts General HospitalCancerMental HealthRead more about this story from CNN affiliate WHDH.

(CNN) -- The attorney for the Massachusetts mother found guilty of attempted murder for withholding medications from her cancer-stricken son said Tuesday the system failed his client.

"Some of the times when people have mental problems they have a hard time reaching out. That's the purpose of social workers. Social workers are supposed to be able to detect when people have problems. The social workers on this case failed to do that. Certainly the warning signs were there," attorney Kevin James said on CNN's "Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell."

"Why didn't the people that knew better, why didn't they come forward and help?" he asked.

Kristen LaBrie was found guilty Tuesday of attempted murder, assault and battery and causing bodily harm to a child for failing to give her son, Jeremy Fraser, cancer medications, according to CNN affiliate WHDH. Fraser, who also was autistic, died in 2009 at age 9, WHDH reported.

"Certainly there was no motive in this case," said James. "She did not intentionally withhold the medication from little Jeremy."

Prosecutors had argued that LaBrie knew exactly what she was doing when she stopped giving her son his cancer treatment, WHDH reported.

LaBrie, who testified in her own defense during the trial, was placed in handcuffs inside the courtroom after the jury delivered its verdict, video from WHDH showed.

She will be sentenced on Friday, the Boston affiliate reported.

"Mass General Hospital let this woman go," James said, referring to Massachusetts General Hospital. "They should have known that there were issues here -- should have known that maybe they were requesting too much of this single, 38-year-old woman to take care of a severely autistic child that now had cancer."

Watch ISSUES with Jane Velez-Mitchell Monday through Sunday at 7pm ET on HLN. For the latest from ISSUES click here.

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