WASHINGTON (CNN) - A Minnesota judge will be hearing Sen. Larry Craig's petition to overturn his guilty plea on a disorderly conduct charge in Minneapolis Wednesday, but Craig will not be at the hearing.
"I have been advised not to. I will not be attending," Craig, R-Idaho, told CNN.
He was arrested June 11 during a police sting in an airport men's room for allegedly making sexual overtures to an undercover male police officer. He entered a written guilty plea to the disorderly conduct charge in August.
In his petition to vacate the plea, Craig's attorney maintained the senator's "panic" over the possibility that the allegations would be made public drove him to accept a guilty plea without seeking legal advice and that he had been assured by the arresting officer that the matter would remain private.
A spokeswoman for the 4th Judicial District told CNN the court has not yet gotten any word from the senator's attorneys as to whether he will attend.
The Minnesota prosecutor who handled the disorderly conduct case against Craig said that the Idaho Republican was "calm" and "methodical" as they discussed his entering a guilty plea and that Craig was warned his case would be a matter of public record.
In an affidavit filed Monday in Hennepin County District Court, prosecutor Christopher Renz also said he advised Craig to consult an attorney before entering a written guilty plea - advice the senator did not take. Between his June arrest and August guilty plea, Craig also turned up in person at the offices of the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport police, seeking contact information "so his lawyer can speak to someone," according to a report filed by an officer who talked to Craig.
The officer, Adam Snedker, said in a police report that the senator appeared "agitated and demeaning" during their June 22 conversation. The report was included in Monday's court filing by prosecutors opposing Craig's petition
to overturn his guilty plea.
In the wake of the allegations, Craig - who has denied any wrongdoing and insists he is not gay - announced that he would resign from the Senate. However, he later told Senate leaders that he might remain in office if his plea is overturned.
- CNN's Dana Bash, Ted Barrett and David Steck