Image via WikipediaBerlusconi to Face Trial in Underage Prostitution Case - NYTimes.com: "A Milan judge on Tuesday ordered Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to stand trial in April on charges of paying an underage nightclub dancer for sex and abusing his office to help release her from police custody when she was detained for theft, Italian news media reported.
Mr. Berlusconi denies wrongdoing. After the decision on Tuesday, he did not appear at a scheduled news conference in Sicily, where Italy is seeking to stem a flow of more than 5,000 illegal immigrants from Tunisia.
Ever since prosecutors announced last week they would call for an expedited trial, saying they had enough evidence to waive preliminary hearings, Mr. Berlusconi has fought back in the media, accusing the judiciary of a “moral coup” against his leadership.
The prime minister said on Monday that he would not step down, and his center-right coalition, which governs with a narrow majority, has stood by him, even as a growing number of Italians are growing weary of his leadership. As the crisis wears on, no one has ruled out early elections before his mandate ends in 2013."
