NY- The dour dominatrix of Westchester County pleaded not guilty to prostitution charges last night as an army of one protested her prosecution.
“The government doesn’t belong in our bedrooms,” shouted a woman as Sandra Chemero, 46, arrived at the Bedford Justice Court for a hearing.
The woman, a self-described former escort service operator who called herself Madame X, declared, “I am fighting for the women of America.”
Chemero, clad in purple pants and a dark wool coat, frowned at her supporter as she clicked past the woman on black stiletto heels.
After an in-chambers conference, Judge Kevin Quaranta allowed Chemero to post $1,800 bail and remain free until a hearing April 12.
Chemero was charged Feb. 26 after a police raid at a home on Haines Road in the tony town of Bedford, next door to the K’hal Adas Kasho yeshiva. It’s alleged she maintained a dungeon for “submissive slaves” in the house.
Authorities said an undercover Westchester County cop who visited the home before the raid said Chemero offered kinky sex for money – $275 per hour.
During the raid, cops said they found a smorgasbord of weaponry, including a stun gun; electronic dart gun; gravity knife; switchblade knife; metal knuckles; billy club; cane sword; bludgeon; sandbag; sandclub; chukka sticks, and a kung fu throwing star.
Chemero’s lawyer, George Galgano, insisted last night “the complaints were not sufficient,” adding, “Obviously, we deny all allegations.”
When she left court, Chemero glared at reporters and sullenly ignored all their questions.
Chemero rented her two-story, white clapboard Victorian digs last summer and began advertising on her Web site.
Being a dominatrix is legal in New York, and there was no mention of prostitution on the Web site.
In December, Bedford cops received an anonymous letter complaining about the goings-on at the house and set up a sting operation.
The bust shocked the genteel and wealthy community where Martha Stewart, Chevy Chase, Glenn Close, Ralph Lauren and Chazz Palminteri all have homes.