Queens Pol Indicted

The personal and political life of Councilman Dennis Gallagher could get a lot worse before it starts getting better.

A gaggle of television and camera folk mobbed the councilman and his wife as he left Queens County Courthouse on Friday morning, some carelessly rushing into Queens Boulevard to get a shot of the embattled pol, who quickly posted $200,000 bail. (Queens District Attorney Richard Brown told reporters that Gallagher and his lawyers were informed of the bail amount last night, but noted that the practice was not uncommon.)

Gallagher was served with an eight-count indictment, including a first-degree rape charge that carries a maximum 25-year sentence if he is convicted.

On Thursday, he was indicted by a grand jury on charges he raped and physically abused a woman whom he met at a bar on July 9, and later took back to his office in Middle Village. Gallagher surrendered to the 112th Police Precinct in Forest Hills Friday morning.

The councilman, who won his seat in 2001, admitted to having sex with the accuser, but claimed it had been consensual.

The woman accusing Gallagher of rape, who appeared before the grand jury herself last week, called his claims of innocence "all BS" and denied the sex was consensual.

Meanwhile, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn issued a statement stating the matter would be referred to the council's Ethics Committee, which could ultimately choose to boot Gallagher from his seat.

DA Brown held a press conference after the arraignment. He denied reports in The New York Post that other women with similar sexual harassment allegations against Gallagher testified before a grand jury. He did, however, stop short of saying the investigation was closed.

Gallagher is due back in court on September 28.