BEIJING, Sept. 12 (Xinhuanet) -- U.S. senator Larry Craig's request to let him take back his guilty plea in an airport sex sting will be heard on Sept. 26 -- just days before the Sept. 30 deadline the Idaho Republican set for himself to resign if his name is not cleared, said a Minnesota court Tuesday.

    The Hennepin County District Court's announcement came a day after lawyers for the three-term senator filed a motion in court saying he pleaded guilty to the charge against him because he panicked under intense anxiety and fear of publicity, and is innocent of wrongdoing.

    A spokesman for Craig has said the Idaho Republican is unlikely to try to finish his third term unless a court moves quickly to overturn Craig's conviction. Craig has been under intense pressure from fellow Republicans to resign.     

    The hearing will take place before Judge Charles Porter, rather than Judge Gary Larson, who had accepted Craig's guilty plea. That could help Craig's attorneys, who are arguing, in effect, that the judge made a mistake accepting Craig's guilty plea.

    In August, Craig pleaded guilty to a charge of disorderly conduct after being arrested on June 11 in the Minneapolis International Airport. Police conducting a sting operation involving illicit sex in the men's rooms at the airport believed Craig made a series of signals to police officer Dave Karsnia, indicating his desire to participate in a sex act, including tapping his foot and waving his hand under a stall divider toward Karsnia, who was in the neighboring stall.

    Craig, 62, was ordered to pay 575 U.S. dollars in fines and fees and given a 10-day suspended jail sentence. In exchange, prosecutors dropped a gross misdemeanor charge of interference to privacy.

    Since his arrest and plea became public last month, Craig has steadfastly denied that he did anything wrong.

    (Agencies)