Dominique Strauss-Kahn pleaded not guilty in a strong voice at the brief proceeding, standing between his defense team as his wife, journalist Anne Sinclair, watched.

State Supreme Court Justice Michael Obus went through the formality of telling Strauss-Kahn he needed to appear in court and had a right to be present at his trial, to which the economist said “yes.” The French diplomat appeared in court for the first time since he was released on $6 million in cash bail and bond last month. He has been under house arrest that includes 24-hour monitors and armed guards, first in a downtown Manhattan apartment and now in a deluxe, $50,000-a-month Tribeca town house.

About 50 hotel workers bused in by their union gathered outside the courthouse to jeer Strauss-Kahn, many wearing their work uniforms. They shouted “shame on you” as he arrived, and again as he left in a black sport-utility vehicle.

The accuser “is a hard-working woman who was just doing her job,” said Wendy Baranello, a hotel union organizer.

“It’s outrageous.” The protesters wanted to send the message that “New York is the wrong place to mess with a hotel worker,” said Aissata Bocum, a Ramada Inn housekeeper.

After the brief court appearance, Strauss-Kahn’s attorney Ben Brafman said by the end of the case, “it will be clear that there was no element of forcible compulsion in this case whatsoever. Any suggestion to the contrary is simply not credible.” Brafman’s similar comments at an earlier court hearing have led to speculation that the defense will argue the encounter was consensual. He repeated again Monday that he and co-counsel William Taylor would not be commenting on the specifics of the case.

“We will defend this case in the courtroom,” he said, urging there not be a rush to judgment.

But the maid’s attorney, Kenneth Thompson, said she would testify in court and condemned speculation that she either made up the attack or exaggerated the claims.

“The victim wants you to know that all of Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s power, money and influence throughout the world will not keep the truth about what he did to her in that hotel room from coming out,” Thompson said.

Thompson said the 32-year-old woman has not worked since the encounter because she is traumatized. And she will not settle the case or back down.

“She is standing up for women around the world sexually assaulted who are too afraid to come forward,” he said.

Prosecutors have several weeks to answer the defense demands, and the defense requests do not mean the prosecution has made any deals or promises. Strauss-Kahn’s next court date was set for July 18.

The case has been intensely followed around the world, spawning news reports even about food deliveries to the home where Strauss-Kahn is staying. His arrest rocked France, where he had been considered a potential contender in next year’s presidential elections, and shook up the IMF. He resigned amid the scandal, and proclaimed his innocence in a letter to staff. The powerful lending organization has yet to name his replacement.

The hearing was the top story on French front pages and broadcasts Monday.

“DSK: D-Day” headlined French newspaper Le Figaro, suggesting the routine hearing was a pivotal moment in the case. It was also a reference to Monday’s 67th anniversary of the US- and British-led invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, known as D-Day, which helped free France from the Nazi grip in World War II.

Strauss-Kahn was arraigned on charges of attempted rape, sex abuse, a criminal sex act, unlawful imprisonment and forcible touching. The most serious charge carries a maximum term of five to 25 years in prison.

The 62-year-old had been staying at the Sofitel, near Times Square in Manhattan, in a $3,000-a-night suite. He was scheduled to check out the day of the encounter.

The maid, a West African widow and mother of a 15-year-old girl, told police Strauss-Kahn chased her down a hallway in his Sofitel hotel suite May 14, tried to pull down her pantyhose and forced her to perform oral sex.

Prosecutors said last month that evidence against Strauss-Kahn was building by the day. Tests have found Strauss-Kahn’s DNA matched material on the woman’s uniform shirt, people familiar with the investigation told the AP.