Jeffrey Epstein’s accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell fails to appeal convictions – The Published Reporter

UNITED STATES: A U.S. judge has rejected Ghislaine Maxwell’s appeal of her sex trafficking conviction. In December 2021, Maxwell, 62, was found guilty of aiding and abetting notorious businessman Jeffrey Epstein in the sexual exploitation of underage girls. In June 2022, she was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Judges at the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled that Maxwell’s sentence was “procedurally reasonable” and upheld her five convictions.

According to a lawyer for Maxwell, the decision will be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. In 2019, Maxwell’s ex-boyfriend Epstein committed suicide in a Manhattan jail cell, five weeks after he was arrested and charged with human trafficking.

Sex trafficking

Maxwell had argued that she should be released under a 2008 deal struck between Epstein and federal prosecutors in Florida. Prosecutors agreed not to prosecute his accused accomplices under the terms of the agreement. The British socialite “should never have been prosecuted,” Maxwell’s lawyers argued in March, because of the “odd” deal.

However, three justices rejected her arguments, arguing that Epstein’s non-prosecution agreement was only intended to bind prosecutors in southern Florida. The ruling also rejected Maxwell’s arguments that her trial was wrongly thrown out because a juror failed to report his history of childhood sexual abuse.

Using resources through gifts and promises

Maxwell’s attorney said she will now file an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court to challenge her conviction. Arthur Aidala released a statement saying, “We strongly disagree with the outcome and are obviously very disappointed with the court’s decision.”

Four women testified at Maxwell’s 2022 trial that they suffered abuse as children at Epstein’s homes in Florida, New York, New Mexico and the Virgin Islands. They told how Maxwell, the daughter of former Daily Mirror owner Robert Maxwell, persuaded them to give Epstein massages that escalated into an intimate encounter. They said Epstein used gifts and promises to leverage his resources and contacts to help them, luring them in.

During her trial, Maxwell’s lawyers argued that the prosecution waited too long to file charges against her and that she had not had enough time to prepare for her trial. However, the court rejected their attempts to have the case dismissed.