The 12 jurors of the trial of the former British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, tried in New York for sex trafficking, resumed Monday their long deliberations to decide on the guilt or the innocence of the former companion of the influential American financier Jeffrey Epstein died in prison in 2019.
Mme Maxwell, who turned 60 on Christmas Day, is spending the holiday season in a New York prison where she has been incarcerated since the summer of 2020, prosecuted among other things for providing Mr. Epstein between the years 1994 and 2004 sexually exploited underage girls.
The trial in Manhattan federal court began on November 29 and the hearing ended a week ago. Since then, and after a break for Christmas, the 12 jurors cannot all agree on the guilt or the innocence of this elegant sexagenarian who grew up and evolved in hyper-privileged circles between Europe and the States -United.
Six crimes
Holding a triple British, French and American nationality, Ghislaine Maxwell risks a long prison sentence if she is found guilty of the six crimes with which she is charged, all in connection with sexual violence committed by Jeffrey Epstein on four victims, minors in at the material time, and who testified during the trial.
For their fourth day of closed-door deliberations, jurors demanded Monday morning from Judge Alison Nathan that she send them a whiteboard, highlighters and “Post-it” notes in different colors.
They also asked for a precise legal definition of the offense of “incitement to debauchery” as well as a transcript of the testimony of a former boyfriend of one of the four accusers, known by the pseudonym “Jane”.
Suspected of having surrounded himself for years with many young girls, to whom he asked for sexual massages, in his luxurious residences in Florida, New Mexico or in the US Virgin Islands, Jeffrey Epstein had committed suicide in a new prison. -Yorkaise in the summer of 2019. A death that caused a scandal, the influential financier taking away his secrets and depriving dozens of victims of a trial.
A year later, Ghislaine Maxwell was arrested in the northeastern United States.
“Sophisticated predator”
This regular in the international jet set, daughter of media mogul Robert Maxwell, who died in 1991, has been portrayed by prosecutor Alison Moe as a “sophisticated predator” and a key figure in the system set up with Jeffrey Epstein, of which she was the “Partner in love” and “the right arm”.
Concretely, the jury must say if Ghislaine Maxwell encouraged one of the victims, “Jane”, to have sex with the multimillionaire from 1994 to 1997, from 14 to 17 years old. Or if she was guilty of sex trafficking against “Carolyn”, paid 300 dollars by sex massage and also underage at the time of the facts (2001-2004). “Carolyn” referred to the accused as the one setting the dates and assured her that she had seen her naked and touched her breast in the Palm Beach villa.
For her part, “Jane” had told how the couple had approached and put her at ease, promising to help this young girl from a disadvantaged family in Palm Beach.
The defense on the contrary pleaded the acquittal, assuring that there was “no proof that Ghislaine Maxwell” recruited only one of the four victims to deliver it to Jeffrey Epstein and criticizing “the very bad and variable memory” of the accusers. on events more than 25 years old.
During their deliberations, the jurors also asked to have in hand the transcripts of several interrogations, including those of several victims.
Ghislaine Maxwell has pleaded not guilty.
“Your honor, the prosecution has not provided evidence beyond a reasonable doubt, so I do not need to testify,” she said on December 17 for her only and very brief speech.