ST. PAUL, Minn. — Attorneys for U.S. Sen. Larry Craig are asking the Minnesota Court of Appeals to correct a “manifest injustice” by allowing the Idaho Republican to withdraw his guilty plea stemming from an airport restroom sex sting.
In court papers filed Tuesday, the lawyers asked the appellate judges to reverse the trial court’s decision to let stand Craig’s guilty plea to a disorderly conduct charge. They also asked the court to vacate his plea.
Craig was arrested in June in a restroom stall at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport during a broad sweep targeting men soliciting sex.
After news of his arrest and plea became public in August, Craig denied wrongdoing. He insisted his actions were misconstrued and said he wasn’t gay. He said he pleaded guilty and paid a fine hoping to resolve the matter quietly.
He later tried to withdraw his guilty plea, but a Hennepin County judge refused.
Tuesday’s filing repeats many arguments that Craig’s attorneys made before, including claims that the lower court abused its discretion and that the guilty plea is invalid because there is no factual basis for a disorderly conduct charge.
Craig has said he will finish his term, which ends in January 2009.
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