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| Dominique Strauss-Kahn Acquitted of Pimping Charges | Dominique Strauss-Kahn Acquitted of Pimping Charges |
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| PARIS — Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the International Monetary Fund, was acquitted of aggravated pimping charges by judges in the northern French city of Lille on Friday, bringing to a close a nearly four-year legal battle that captivated France and shined an uncomfortable spotlight on the sexual activities of rich and powerful men. | PARIS — Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the International Monetary Fund, was acquitted of aggravated pimping charges by judges in the northern French city of Lille on Friday, bringing to a close a nearly four-year legal battle that captivated France and shined an uncomfortable spotlight on the sexual activities of rich and powerful men. |
| Mr. Strauss-Kahn, 66, was charged in 2012 of “aggravated procurement in a group,” or pimping, and of using a network of friends and subordinates to organize lavish sex parties with prostitutes. A year earlier he was accused and later cleared of assaulting a housekeeper at a hotel in New York. | Mr. Strauss-Kahn, 66, was charged in 2012 of “aggravated procurement in a group,” or pimping, and of using a network of friends and subordinates to organize lavish sex parties with prostitutes. A year earlier he was accused and later cleared of assaulting a housekeeper at a hotel in New York. |
| Once a strong contender for the French presidency, he risked up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to 1.5 million euros, or about $1.7 million. In France, having sex with prostitutes is not illegal but soliciting and pimping are. | |
| Judges in Lille, where some of the parties were organized at the Carlton Hotel, acquitted Mr. Strauss-Kahn for lack of evidence, a ruling that was widely expected. In 2013, the Lille prosecutor recommended that the charges be dropped, but he was overruled by investigating magistrates who decided to proceed to trial. At the end of that trial, the same prosecutor asked for Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s acquittal. | Judges in Lille, where some of the parties were organized at the Carlton Hotel, acquitted Mr. Strauss-Kahn for lack of evidence, a ruling that was widely expected. In 2013, the Lille prosecutor recommended that the charges be dropped, but he was overruled by investigating magistrates who decided to proceed to trial. At the end of that trial, the same prosecutor asked for Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s acquittal. |
| During the trial, which took place in February, Mr. Strauss-Kahn acknowledged that he was present at the sex parties, which took place in Lille, Paris and Washington and were attended by lawyers, judges, police officials and journalists, according to prosecutors. | During the trial, which took place in February, Mr. Strauss-Kahn acknowledged that he was present at the sex parties, which took place in Lille, Paris and Washington and were attended by lawyers, judges, police officials and journalists, according to prosecutors. |
| But he vehemently denied that he had played a part in organizing them or that he knew that some of the women present were prostitutes. | But he vehemently denied that he had played a part in organizing them or that he knew that some of the women present were prostitutes. |
| Thirteen other defendants stood trial, including a former Lille police chief, several local businessmen, and Dominique Alderweireld, a sex club owner with the nickname Dodo la Saumure, all of whom were accused of facilitating the hiring of prostitutes for the parties. Most were also acquitted. | |
| Mr. Strauss-Kahn told the court in February that he would never have attended the parties if he had been aware that some of the women there were prostitutes, particularly given his position at the I.M.F. and his political ambitions. “It would have been far too dangerous,” he said, noting that prostitutes could have been susceptible to “pressures.” | Mr. Strauss-Kahn told the court in February that he would never have attended the parties if he had been aware that some of the women there were prostitutes, particularly given his position at the I.M.F. and his political ambitions. “It would have been far too dangerous,” he said, noting that prostitutes could have been susceptible to “pressures.” |
| Mr. Strauss-Kahn sought instead to characterize the parties as sex between multiple and consensual partners, in a spirit of libertinage. Before the trial, a lawyer for Mr. Strauss-Kahn argued that without clothes, it was impossible to tell the difference between a prostitute and a naked socialite at an orgy. | Mr. Strauss-Kahn sought instead to characterize the parties as sex between multiple and consensual partners, in a spirit of libertinage. Before the trial, a lawyer for Mr. Strauss-Kahn argued that without clothes, it was impossible to tell the difference between a prostitute and a naked socialite at an orgy. |
| At the opening of the trial, Judge Bernard Lemaire said that the court was not an arbiter of public morality and was only adjudicating whether laws had been broken. But for many in France, where the private lives of public figures are often considered sacrosanct, the case crossed a threshold, as Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s self-described “rough” sexuality was publicly discussed and dissected in court. | At the opening of the trial, Judge Bernard Lemaire said that the court was not an arbiter of public morality and was only adjudicating whether laws had been broken. But for many in France, where the private lives of public figures are often considered sacrosanct, the case crossed a threshold, as Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s self-described “rough” sexuality was publicly discussed and dissected in court. |
| Two of the prostitutes who testified in court described Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s sometimes brutal sexual practices, but they admitted that money was never spoken of and that they never told him about their profession. | Two of the prostitutes who testified in court described Mr. Strauss-Kahn’s sometimes brutal sexual practices, but they admitted that money was never spoken of and that they never told him about their profession. |
| Several plaintiffs withdrew their claims for damages in the final stages of the trial, saying there was not enough evidence, but stated that they were happy the case had fostered debate about France’s prostitution laws. | Several plaintiffs withdrew their claims for damages in the final stages of the trial, saying there was not enough evidence, but stated that they were happy the case had fostered debate about France’s prostitution laws. |
| On Friday, as judges in Lille read their ruling, the lower house of the French Parliament debated a bill on prostitution that would decriminalize soliciting but would make it illegal to buy sex. The bill has shuttled between the two houses of Parliament since 2013 but might not go to a final vote before several months. | On Friday, as judges in Lille read their ruling, the lower house of the French Parliament debated a bill on prostitution that would decriminalize soliciting but would make it illegal to buy sex. The bill has shuttled between the two houses of Parliament since 2013 but might not go to a final vote before several months. |
| Mr. Strauss-Kahn saw his presidential ambitions dashed in May 2011, when he was accused of assaulting a housekeeper at the Sofitel hotel in New York and had to resign as head of the I.M.F. | |
| Although the charges were later dropped and a civil suit ended with a settlement, Mr. Strauss-Kahn was then entangled in the prostitution ring investigation. His political career never recovered from the scandals, but he has striven to rehabilitate his public image, working in investment banking and as a consultant to foreign countries including Serbia. |