(Bloomberg) — Former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who may learn today that some or all of the criminal charges against him have been dropped, still could face liability in civil court. The office of Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. has invited Nafissatou Diallo, the hotel maid who accused Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault and attempted rape, to a meeting to preview tomorrow’s status hearing in the case, according to her lawyers. One of those lawyers,Kenneth Thompson, told the New York Times that he sees the invitation as part of a Vance plan to drop some or all of the charges. Thompson didn’t return a call or e-mail from Bloomberg News for comment on that remark. Diallo sued Strauss-Kahn this month in New York state court in the Bronx, alleging “violent and deplorable acts” occurred May 14 in his suite in the Sofitel, a midtown Manhattan hotel. She seeks unspecified monetary damages. Strauss-Kahn has pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges.
