DSK: From perp walk to a stroll in the park

Dominique Strauss-Kahn was evidently enjoying his freedom yesterday as he strolled around Manhattan wearing shorts and trainers.

Mr Strauss-Kahn became a free man on Tuesday when a judge ended the sexual-assault case against him at the request of prosecutors; they said the hotel maid who accused the former International Monetary Fund chief could not be trusted. Mr Strauss-Kahn appeared to be in a jovial mood as he walked in the sunshine with his wife, Anne Sinclair, but he is likely to see more legal action.

He still faces a civil case brought by the maid, Nafissatou Diallo, in New York and a separate inquiry in France from a writer who accuses him of trying to force himself on her during a 2003 interview.

Before his arrest, he had been a front-runner to become the French Socialist Party's presidential candidate. He has now missed the deadline for registering for the opposition party's primary. A poll shows French people do not want the former finance minister to return to politics.

The survey, by the pollster CSA, showed that 53 per cent of those questioned would prefer Mr Strauss-Kahn to play no part in the political debate as France gears up for presidential elections next April.